Normally Perfect
by livewiresandwildfires
Summary: Fox read all this aloud in his best Sergeant voice. Upon finishing, he turned to his unit and sighed. "To hell and back, and back again." / Second in my 'Perfect' Series. Inspired by stormbringer94's 'It Get's Better Sometimes'. / Rated T for strong language and violence.
1. Prolouge

**Welcome to my new story! A sequal to Perfectly Normal.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Alex Rider or any recognizable characters. This universe belongs to Anthony Horowitz. Also, if I reference or you recognize the brilliance of published author's or fanfiction writers, I disclaim.**

 **This story was inspired by 'It Get's Better Sometimes' -stormbringer94**

* * *

K unit didn't even flinch as the James Bond theme song rung out through the house, followed by the jingle of keys in the door. It was a signal of sorts, they'd agreed to ring the doorbell before coming in as last time Alex had suddenly appeared in the house when they'd all thought he was on a mission, Fox had almost sent a bullet through him.

Of course, at the time they hadn't realized the doorbell played the 007 theme. According to Alex, it had been a gift, and 'believe me I've tried to change it'. On the bright side, it prevented any accidental murders. They all turned as the front door swung inward.

Alex stepped in, shaking off his black umbrella and putting it in a container by the door. He shucked off his coat, tossing it on the hook, then turned to acknowledge his unit.

"Hey."

"Hey Cub. You're back early."

"Yup," he replied, popping the 'p'. "I made the executive decision to forgo the mandatory medical eval on account of I'm not even injured."

"Cub. I'm pretty sure there's a reason it's called mandatory," Snake said, a hint of disapproval in his voice.

"Yes I'm sure there is. Haven't figured it out yet."  
Alex plopped on the couch, still managing to keep his natural grace, even when tired and lightly coated in rain water.

Eagle quickly rose from his usual spot on the couch and walked into the kitchen. He reappeared moments later with a steaming mug of coffee, which he placed in Alex's grateful hands. Alex wrapped his fingers around the drink, trying to scavenge some warmth through the insulated mug.

"So, you miss me?"

A round of snorts met his words, closely followed by 'of course not' and 'very funny Cub' and 'bout as much as I miss the chicken pox'.

Alex leaned back into the couch, pulling his legs up under him. Sitting cross legged, he sipped carefully from his mug. Steam hit him in the face, causing his cheeks to pink slightly. He let his eyes drift over the four men in front of him, observing their playful banter. He took a moment, as he'd been doing often, to reflect on how he'd ended up where he had.

In the past, he'd looked back and thought about Blunt and the blackmail. Ian and his parents and Ash and all the lies that had piled up. Now, he thought about how he and K unit had slowly grown together.

They had been living with him for nearly half a year. Well, not Eagle. Turns out that he actually had a fiancé, Sadie Chambers, who he lived with a couple districts away. He wasn't too far, which was a good thing since he spent so much time here, Alex occasionally forgot that he didn't in fact, live in the house.

Alex had met Sadie quite a few times. He liked her alot, she was funny and intelligent and more observant than most. The only down fall was the fact that she was an army psychologist. Shrinks were not his favourite people in the world, but she'd never tried to psychoanalyze him before, so she was good in his books.

Alex thought that she reminded him a bit of Jack and Sabina. Friendly and caring, but outspoken and the very embodiment of independent, strong women. She was fine with Eagle running off with the SAS for days, weeks, or even months at a time. She was proud of him for it. And she treated Alex like family from day one. Now a days, she was over as much as Eagle was. Either with him or alone.

K unit had gone on a few missions since being with Alex, and Sadie would come keep him company, or vice versa. Last time Alex was on a mission, he came home to Sadie, alone in the house, watching Doctor Who reruns on the telly.

And Sadie wasn't the only relative he'd met. Eagle had dozens of relatives, mostly weird Aunts that smelled like taffy and peppermints.

For Christmas, the whole of K unit had been invited to Wolf's mothers house. They were adamant that that included Alex.

Turns out, Wolf had a huge family. His mother, Elena San Luca was like a female Wolf. Tough as nails and demanding.

Yet, unlike her son, she'd taken an instant liking to Alex. Elena had immediately swept Alex away upon him entering her home to introduce him to the family.

Wolf had four older siblings, Jason San Luca, Carmen Cane, Heather Taloo, and Ashton San Luca, and two younger, Katherine San Luca and Mat San Luca.

His four older siblings were all married with kids, so he met Rose San Luca, Lincoln Cane, Drake Taloo and Mari San Luca, Wolfs in-laws.

And of course Evelyn San Luca, Wren and Tess Cane, Trevor and Thea Taloo, and Zia, Griffin and Klaus San Luca, Wolfs nieces and nephews.

Alex had been understandably overwhelmed and spent most of the time sitting on the floor playing with baby Tess and Klaus, skillfully avoiding all questions.

Eagle also had two siblings, West and Brook Taylor. Alex had met Brook, who was divorced with 2 kids. She had identical twins, Ember and Aspen.

West was one sibling whom Alex hadn't met, as he was living in Hong Kong at the moment, but he had heard plenty about him, and had dropped in on his and Eagles Skypes occasionally.

Snake was an only child, but Alex had met both his parents and his grandparents long before Snake introduced them in a situation he'd rather not think about. That was one of the weirdest missions he'd ever been on.

And then there was Fox, he had a half brother on his dad's side named Ace who he never spoke to on the grounds that 'he's an ass'.

He also had a stepsister on his mums side, Jessica Fleur, and another half brother, Roman Jonstone.

Jessica had 3 kids and was living with her husband in Nice, France. Roman had 4 kids and lived with his girlfriend in Brixton. Alex was quite fond of them.

All in all, Alex thought his unofficial family had expanded more than enough over the past few months. All though, according to Elena San Luca, (she insisted on Alex calling her grandma, he wouldn't have it), there's no such thing as too much family.

All the people in his life made him increasingly nervous, but it was too late to go back now.

Anyway, Alex thought he actually liked having a big family. Surprisingly, even if he didn't see them often, it was nice to know they where out there. Actual people with actual lives that didn't involve terrorists plots or mass genocide or world domination.

Actual people that were, not only living and breathing, but living and breathing thanks to him. It was nice to know he'd managed to save some people.

* * *

 **Next: One little letter can change a lot.**


	2. To Hell and Back and Back Again

Alex woke with an uncomfortable crick in his neck.

There was a bright orange light against his eyelids, like someone was shining a flashlight in his face. Opening his eyes, he saw that he'd fallen asleep in his sitting position on the couch.

At some point, Eagle had crashed next to him, his head on Alex's knee. Wolf had also fallen asleep, across from Alex in the arm chair. Wolf's hand was precariously close to a cold mug of coffee left on the floor.

Snake had disappeared at some point in the night, presumably to his room.

As for Fox, Alex could hear him humming the Loony Toons theme in the kitchen.

Alex blew out his cheeks and carefully extracted himself from under Eagles head. Skillfully, he evaded Wolf and his haphazardly placed furniture.

He walked silently into the kitchen, padding across the tile floor and taking a seat on the bar stool at the end of the island. He rolled his head forward, there was a small click as he managed to release some of the tension in his neck before looking up again.

Fox was standing with his back to him at the stove. Alex could smell the eggs and bacon cooking.

"That smells good," he commented.

Fox banged his pan against the stove before wiping around to look at Alex, nearly losing the bacon in the process.

"How many times do I have to ask you not to do that?"

"At least once more? You're gonna set the eggs on fire," Alex laughed.

Fox turned, removing the second pan containing eggs from the burner and continuing to cook the meat. Fox was actively pouting now, which made Alex's smile widen.

"I hate you," Fox stated.

"I know."

"Like, 100% of the time."

"I know."

* * *

Eagle woke next, complaining loudly of aches and pains. He shut up quickly when Fox slapped a plate of bacon on the table in front of him.

Eagle quickly scooped some up and shoved it in his mouth. He attempted to speak around the bacon; possibly, he was commenting on how 'this is great', though it was equally as likely that he was asking Fox about his weight.

Before Eagle could embarrass himself further, Snake entered the kitchen. He was looking a little rumpled, still in the same clothes as the night before, but he still looked infinitely more awake than any of them.

Snake smiled, greeted them, then tossed a stack of letters and envelopes at the head of the table where Alex sat.

Quite a few correspondents had piled up in the few days Alex had been away. He sighed and began leafing through them, sorting them into two stacks.

K unit were seated around the island, eating breakfast. Eagle had just spilled his orange juice for the third time this morning and Alex had moved his stool to the far wall, bringing his stack of letters with him.

K unit never opened any of the mail that came when Alex was away, just in case there was a sensitive government secret; they didn't even bring in the newspaper. Better safe than sorry.

There was quite a healthy stack that had built up over the last few days, most of it addressed to Mr. Alex Rider or A. Rider.

Some were addressed to Alex's pseudonyms, which made it very difficult for K unit to determine if they'd got the wrong mail or not. Another reason that they didn't touch the mail.

There was, however, one letter not addressed to Alex, this one was labeled to Aaron San Luca SAS, Iason J. Clark SAS, Landon P. Taylor SAS, Benjamin W. Daniels SAS.

Alex pulled it out of the bottom of the pile with a mild look of surprise on his face. Most people outside of family wouldn't know that K unit was living here - and family wouldn't bother with letter's, they'd just call. The envelope was crisp, with perfectly printed mailing information on one side. It had an official stamp sealing it shut. The emblem was stamped in pompadour blue coloured wax. It depicted a winged sword with a ribbon flowing across it. The motto Who Dares Win printed on it in hollowed letters.

Alex looked at his unit, observing the last few moments before chaos struck. The calm before the storm. The pan before falling into the fire. He took a deep breath.

"For you," he stated, dangling the letter from two fingers whilst leaning back on his stool.

The four men at the island examined each other. Snake slowly scooted his chair back, out of the way. Wolf opened his mouth to convey a command, but it was too late. Fox picked up his last bacon strip and tossed it across the island with incredible accuracy, smacking Eagle square in the face. He jumped to his feet, reaching for the envelope in Alex's hand.

Eagle, however, recovered quickly. Wiping his sleeve across his grease streaked face, he dove past Fox, shoving him into the sink, which had an automatic sensor and turned on in the process, soaking Fox's sleeve.

Eagle snatched the letter from Fox. He then proceeded to quickly dance into the living room, holding the letter above his head, singing his victory.

The victory was short lived, however. Fox gave chase after him, knocking over two bar stools, and Eagles juice for a fourth time that morning.

By the time Alex, Wolf and Snake got there, Fox had Eagle pinned to the floor. He was literally spread eagle on the carpet, and he didn't look happy about mimicking his name sake.

Fox sat on Eagles back, smirking down at the letter in his hand as low moans of pain and despair escaped from his defeated teammate under him.

Fox cleared his throat with three sharp coughs. He toar the letter open using his thumb nail.

 _K unit,_

 _As of March 28th, veteran unit refresher courses will be held at Brecon Beacons training park facility._  
 _This course is mandatory. Failure to attend, unless otherwise stated, will result in the termination of your SAS license._  
 _All senior units from your year will be asked to take this course. This course includes classes in shooting and gun care, updated classes on health care and terrorism, a psych eval and multiple fitness exams. These are all compulsory._  
 _Your unit has also been selected to run 3 weeks of this years SAS recruits training._  
 _More information upon arrival._

 _Signed, Sergeant Mathias Sanders._

 _P.S. It has been noted that Alexander J. Rider MI6/SAS has rejoined K Unit. He will be required to attend all above stated courses as well._  
 _No exceptions._

Fox read all this aloud in his best Sergeant voice. Upon finishing, he turned to his unit and sighed.

"To hell and back, and back again."

* * *

 **Next: Alex and K unit return to their old haunts**


	3. Dismissed

**A lot of description in this chapter. I'm still kind of setting the scene. Also there's a bit in there that I just wrote for my own fun to bridge the gap and make the chapter a bit longer.**

 **One more thing, I don't know how the SAS names their units. All the senior units will be simple letters A, B, C, etc. The recruits units will be like A2, B2, C2, etc. Or I'll just call them 'the recruits'. Probably not how they'd do it, but good enough. If anyone knows how it would actually work, please tell me.**

* * *

It was barely dawn.

Alex should have been asleep, or at least trying to be. But alas, no such luck. Instead he was standing on his porch with four grumpy, sleep deprived, coffee deprived SAS soldiers. A fun day at the Rider house, as always.

They had been standing at parade rest for over an hour. And while watching the sunrise may seem like a good idea. Fun; maybe romantic in the right setting. In reality it just made Alex tired. More tired, (and maybe a little pissed off).

They'd gotten a call from '6 telling them to be ready and waiting by 0430 hours. It was past 0530 and Alex was very much pissed off.

Weren't soldiers meant to be punctual? Apparently not. Or maybe the car had run off a bridge or something, at this point it was the only logical explanation going through Alex's head. Cause if someone had made him stand outside for over an hour without there being a life or death situation, Alex was ready to create a life or death situation. If you get his meaning.

Just as his almost infinite pool of patience was wearing thin, a sleek black BMW pulled up across the street.

A man in a suit and sunglasses came out and crossed, it was very James Bond askew. And sunglasses at 5:30am? The sun was barely up.

Alex rolled his tired, sleep filled eyes. He lifted his hand, gesturing for K unit to stay where they were on the deck. They obeyed, albeit hesitantly.

Alex stepped onto the brick pathway, meeting the Mr. Bond wannabe before he got too close to the house and his unit.

"I.D. if you please," Alex said lowly, eyeing the agent suspiciously.

The man moved his hand, reaching into the pocket on the inside of his jacket. Alex was instantly on guard, but as a wallet was pulled out, he relaxed slightly.

The agent flipped open his identification with one hand. The picture matched, though Alex couldn't tell the man's eye colour. The name, Anthony Quinn Braydonal, matched what Mrs. Jones had told him. The serial code and agent number where legitimate. There was a nearly transparent logo of a lion and a unicorn standing back to back, tails entwined and a crown in between, that added to its legitimacy. Alex tentatively decided to- not trust- but believe Agent Braydonal.

"Lead the way, Anthony."

The agent frowned at the use of his first name, but led the way down the path regardless. Clearly, Jones or one of her lackeys briefed Anthony on how to handle Alex. The only problem was, of course, the fact that you simply don't handle Alex.

They'd learn eventually.

* * *

"So, Tony. Can I call you Tony? I'm gonna call you Tony, you look like a Tony. How did you come to be Jones' chauffeur?"

A sharp sigh escaped Tony's lips.

"Oh, rough topic? Did you do something bad? Is this punishment?"

A huff.

"Hmm, I'm onto something there. Clearly you think you don't deserve it, either."

Hands whitening on the steering wheel.

"What was it? Lower agent injured on your mission? Was your mission based off false information? Did you not complete it? Was it poached by another intelligence?"

Anthony jerked the wheel slightly sharper than needed on the corner.

"That's it! Who was it? MI5? JIC? Oh no, it was foreign wasn't it? Not America, they're cooperative at the moment. China? No, closer to home... France? Was it DGSE? DPSD? ANSSI? No I got it. DRM right?"

Anthony's face puckered as he sucked his cheeks in, biting his top lip.

"And Bingo was his name-o! Direction du Renseignement Militaire," Alex said in a flawless French accent, "You seriously let DRM steal your assignment? Really?"

Just as Alex was about to continue the interrogation, Fox kicked his seat. Alex swiveled with a ready made glare on his face.

"Cub, leave the poor agent alone."

"You ruin all my fun."

"At the rate you're going we'll have to walk home at the end of training."

"Pfft, Tony here loves me." Alex twisted back to give the agent a false pouty look. "Isn't that right Tony Baloney?"

Another huff.

* * *

Alex was asleep when they reached BB. As were Fox and Eagle, Snake noted.

Alex was sat, legs crossed under him, leaning his forehead against the side window of his passenger seat. His warm breath misted in the cool air, fogging up the tinted glass.

Fox and Eagle were a little less graceful. They were leaning against each other, Eagles head on Fox's shoulder. Fox's head tilted back against the seat. Both their mouths were tipped opened due to the force of gravity, bits of drool dripped unattractively down Fox's chin. Eagles nose was whistling oddly because of the strange angle his airway was placed in.

Snake exchanged a glance with Wolf, who looked surprisingly and uncharacteristically awake. Maybe even excited. As the tires of the car came to a rolling halt in the mud, Snake gave both Fox and Eagle a sharp hit, jerking them awake. He turned to wake Alex, but found him eyes open and alert, like he hadn't closed his eyes in the first place.

They made eye contact, and Alex seemed to know what Snake had been planning. Alex simply raised an eyebrow, causing Snake to avert his eyes and crawl out of the car. Closely followed by Eagle, Fox and Wolf.

They retrieved their duffel bags from the boot of the car. Moments after Alex had slammed the boot shut, Agent Braydonal revved the car engine and floored it out of the dirt lot. Alex smirked slightly and turned with K unit towards the Sergeant's office.

It was quite a decent walk from the parking lot to the group of small office buildings that signified the border of SAS training. They passed only a couple of men in fatigues, who all nodded respectfully. Though Alex could feel their curious double take at the sight of someone so young.

Whatever, he'd get used to it.

They made it to the buildings and walked up to the first one on the far left, marked Sergeant Sanders. Wolf stepped forward and rapped smartly on the wooden panel door.

There was a slightly muffled 'come in' and they all filed in one by one, standing at parade rest in front of the the large mahogany desk.

Alex took a quick glance around the office, taking everything in. It was all up to army regulations. Spotless wood panel flooring that you could literally eat off of. Plain dark grey walls with a distinct absence of any hanging decor. Large, half dome lights strategically placed at regular intervals on the smooth white ceiling.

One large wooden book case, chocked full of novels and pamphlets with labels like "100 ways to make army rations pleasant", "Top Tips to Training", "Dummies Guide to Shooting" and "Scientifically Tested Ways to Legally Torture Cadets".

Then there was the aforementioned mahogany desk. There was a metal tag identifying the Sergeant. It also had two neat stacks of paper. Seemingly reports. Another stack of papers contained in folders marked with varying levels of confidentiality.

There was one of those old lamps that looked like a single tube fixture attached sideways to a base, and next to it was a pencil holder with exactly three sharpened pencils and three black pens.

There was one photo frame, but Alex could only see the backing. It looked old, but well looked after.

Behind the desk, in a high backed office chair, sat Sergeant Mathias Sanders. Certainly young for a sergeant, maybe late twenties, early thirties. And he'd been there when Alex first came. He had dark hair, maybe brown but closer to black and cut army short. His eyes were stern, dark brown. He had a handsome face, tanned from a career in the elements. High cheekbones, strong jawline, well shaped nose, the works.

There was a white scar starting at his hairline and ending near his eyebrow, and a lighter, pinkish, most likely more recent scar on his chin. His attitude demanded respect, his presence seemed to fill up the room. Despite this, when standing, Alex guessed Sanders wouldn't be much taller than the average soldier.

"K unit reporting for duty, sir," Wolf barked out.  
The sergeant examined the unit leisurely, his eyes resting on Alex just a microsecond longer than the others.

"At ease," he barked, matching Wolf in tone and pitch.

"You will be staying in barracks eleven, South. Formal evaluations start tomorrow at 0600 hours. You know the routine. When the new recruits arrive, you'll be in charge of units V-two to Z-two. Any questions?"

There were none.

"Good. Dismissed."

* * *

 **Next: time to see what Alex is made of.**


	4. I Don't Need Any Safety Nets

_0500- Morning Parade_

 _0530- Breakfast_

 _0600- Assault Course, Single_

 _0700- Assault Course, Team_

 _0800- Endurance_

 _0900- Strength_

 _1000- Timed Run_

 _1100- Break_

 _1130- Lunch_

 _1230- Shooting_

 _1330- Seminar A_

 _1500- Seminar B_

 _1630- Personal Fitness Test (PFT)_

 _1800- Break_

 _1830- Dinner_

 _-Personal Time- -Make Up Training-_

 _Note: on day one of training Seminar A will be replaced with a mandatory personal Psych Eval. Seminar B will be replaced with a mandatory team Psych Eval._

"Wow. Looks like fun times all around," Eagles voice sounded slightly choked.

"Sure does," Fox agreed sarcastically, his lip curling slightly.

Alex decided he didn't even want to try to pretend. "5:00 mornings? Is that even legal? And what's up with the Psych? I do not need some army medic evaluating my mental state. I am already perfectly aware of how screwed up I am."

Wolf snorted, not contradicting him. He received a glare for his efforts.

"Are you really going to complain? Actual training was twice this hard. Besides, it's only until the recruits show up. They're getting a crash course, then they're going on their survival hike thing to get here," Snake said, reasonable as always.

Alex tilted his head to observe the roof. "Well, at least there's that to look forward to."

K unit exchanged a look. "If the recruits bother you, Cub, we'll beat them to a non-figurative pulp."

A single snort.

"Seriously."

This time they received a nod. Half hearted, but good enough for now. Alex swung off of Wolf's bed, which they had crowded around to examine their schedule.

He crossed the room to the far bunk, pressed in the corner. He kicked off his boots carelessly and collapsed under his covers. K unit watched as his breathing quickly evened out.

* * *

"They're staring at me."

"You're paranoid."

"This is true. You are not wrong. But I'm not wrong either. They. Are. Definitely. Staring at me."

"Okay. So they're staring a little. You're a teenage super spy in army greens. Get used to it."

Wolf was cranky before breakfast. Alex glared at Wolf over his bowl of morning mush. He assumed it was oatmeal, or something of the sort, but it was impossible to tell for sure. It was a kind of greyish colour, with the consistency of wet cement. It was probably high in vitamins and energy and all the good stuff that soldiers need, but Alex simply didn't trust any food that looked like an unfinished sidewalk.

They joined two other units at a table, S unit and H unit.

After settling in, he glanced up and saw his unit readily eating the grey sludge. Gulping it down like the good little soldiers they were.

Tentatively, he picked up his spoon and took a bite. Better than he'd expected, worse than he'd hoped. He certainly wouldn't be looking up the recipe when he got home.

A couple more spoonfuls and he couldn't take it. He picked up his red apple and attempted to cleanse his mouth of the foul army food.

He sighed, and started picking at his eggs. Logically, Alex knew that he'd have to eat the sludge if he wanted to last until lunch. It'd be a long series of morning drills if he didn't finish the meal. With that in mind, he steeled himself and took a few more mouthfuls.

A moment after he'd filled his mouth with a generous helping of the unknown grey stuff, he tuned in to the conversations around him.

Eagle was making a remark to Fox (with his mouth full) about the schedule. Wolf had pointed out a stain on Snake's shirt. Nothing interesting there.

He opened his ears to the other occupants of the table. S unit was telling a story to another soldier from H unit.

"-plane took off down the runway. Alarms were blaring and the President's guard was going ballistic-" one of S unit's soldiers was saying animatedly.

Alex leaned over to Fox, "What are they going on about?" He asked, gesturing to S unit.

Fox glanced at the soldier telling the story. "Oh, ignore them. Caracal has been telling that story for months."

"-we were guarding the airport entrance, so clean up got there before us. We saw them pulling a girl - couldn't have been more than eighteen - off the plane," the soldier - Caracal - continued.

"What was a teenager doing in Air Force One, do you think?"

 _Ah,_ Alex caught on to the story quite quickly. I mean, how many Air Force One teenage hijackings could there be?"

"I'm more wondering about who was flying the plane. It wasn't the president's pilot."

"Damian Cray," Alex stated without thinking. He regretted it as all the tables occupants swiveled their heads to look at him.

"What was that, Cub?" Wolf asked in confusion.

Alex cleared his throat a bit, "Damian Cray, well, a man he hired, was flying Air Force One when it crashed." At this point every soldier in the barrack's was looking at him.

"Cub, right?" One of S unit's soldiers asked, "I'm Spider, S unit medic. Caracal, leader. Eel, tech. Mandrill, communications." He pointed to his unit members in turn. "Anyway, how exactly would you know any of this."

Alex cringed internally. He was probably breaking a dozen confidentiality contracts; had definitely broken the OSA.

Oh well. Too late to go back now.

"I was on the plane, helped crash it actually. Cray was trying to coordinate about a dozen nuclear strikes with United State's missiles."

"But... Cray was just a pop singer." Mandrill voiced the groups confusion.

"Yeah, and I'm just a schoolboy."

* * *

He elected to leave his meal unfinished. Maybe not the smartest move, but it added to his dramatic exit.

He was barely a few feet away when he heard an uproar break out in his wake.

When got to the assault course just before 0600, Alex was already waiting there. He was examining the mess of ropes and ladders and bars and mud pits.

"Quite the scene you made back there, Cub," Fox said, coming to stand beside Alex.

"I was just having a conversation with some fellow soldiers. Not my fault if your lives are so uneventful that you find that interesting."

"Funny guy. You're a funny guy," Fox replied, still not looking at him.

"If you two are done lolly gagging, perhaps you'd like to start?" Wolf raised an eyebrow in their direction. Alex smirked in reply, and Fox gave a half embarrassed nod.

"Okay then. Cub, it's been a lot longer since you ran the course, so we'll go first. Watch. Then you'll walk it. Walk it. Alright?"

"Sir, yes sir!" Alex gave Wolf a one finger salute, with the wrong finger.

Wolf rolled his eyes and jogged to the starting line.

"Ready?!" Snake shouted, thumb hovering over the button of a stopwatch.

Wolf gave a thumbs up, preparing to run.

"On your mark. Get set. Go!" His thumb came down and Wolf sprinted off.

The numbers on the handheld clock slipped by as Wolf made it to the first wall. Alex watched with thinly veiled interest. He'd admit that he wanted to see how far Wolf had come since first training. He was the Leader of a senior unit, after all, it's safe to say he should have improved some. And he had, Alex noted. He was faster, more agile, relying less on brute strength and more on skill and balance. Not to mention that that old fear of heights didn't seem to faze him, Alex noted as Wolf launched himself off a climbing wall.

Even so, there were parts of the course that Alex would need to perform differently. He was shorter than the shortest soldier, if not by much. He wasn't as strong, either; really more on the lean side. However, he was more flexible and faster and his stamina was nothing to laugh at; that would have to make up for it.

"Time," Snake said as Wolf hit the finish line. Wolf came to meet them, slowing to a stop to see his time.

"Five minutes and twelve seconds. Someone's out of practice." Snake gave Wolf a joking smile.

Wolf snorted. "Let's see you do any better." He snatched the stopwatch out of Snake's hand.

Snake gave him an easy grin and made his way to the start.

The process repeated with Eagle, then Fox. Snake made it in five minutes fifteen. Eagle came in at five minutes twenty one seconds. Fox put them all to shame with five minutes even.

"Alright Cub, you're up," Wolf called.

Alex wondered up to the mark, waiting for the signal from Fox, who now had the stop watch. He bounced anxiously on his toes, not caring that it probably made him look like a child.

Fox had just given him the thumbs up, and Alex started off. Going from naught to a sprint within seconds.

Just then, a call came out from over the hill.

"K unit! Fall in!"

Alex came to a skidding stop, heels digging into the soft welsh ground. He looked over, seeing one of the many instructors gesturing at them. The man (Bear maybe? Alex wasn't sure) did not look to be in a pleasant mood. In fact, he looked downright pissed.

Alex jogged over to meet the teacher, falling in next to Eagle. Under his breath, he whispered, "Who's he again?"

"Barracuda. One of the shooting instructors. Specializes in long range guns," Eagle whispered back. However, the man was pretty poor at whispering. By the look on Barracuda's face, Alex was sure he had heard the exchange.

"K unit, you're needed for a consult in the sergeants office."

His unit mates nodded sharply, staring off in the direction of the barracks. Alex moved to follow when Barracuda snapped, "Not you." Then stormed off before Alex could question it.

K unit glanced back at him. Eagle shrugged philosophically; Fox and Snake gave him matching sympathetic looks. Wolf looked at him sternly and said, "We'll be back soon. Stay off the equipment until we get back." Then they all jogged off, not leaving Alex the opportunity to protest.

Alex sighed, listening to his lonely breath in the silent landscape. If he strained his ears, he thought he could hear the sound of gunshots coming from the edge of camp; otherwise, he was completely devoid of company. No other soldiers, no noise, not even woodland creatures to keep him company. Alex, coming from bustling London, found himself missing the never ending background noise of the city.

He wondered back to the starting line for the obstacle course, and flopped on the grass. Finding himself alone for the first time in days, boredom overcame him quickly. Alex lay on his front, ignoring the slightly damp grass and pulling up blades of it, braiding the short strands together.

After a million years (perhaps ten minutes) of idle waiting, Alex popped to his feet. He paced a few steps, spun on his heel and repeated. Apparently, Alex didn't handle boredom with beauty or grace.

Glancing at the position of the sun, he contemplated how long K unit would be. Presumably, judging by Barracuda's attitude and the fact that Alex hadn't been invited, whatever K unit and the instructors were talking about probably had to do with him. He found it irritating, and just a little demeaning, that he wasn't allowed to be present for the meeting. Instead, he was left to his mind numbing isolation.

He wondered up to the first wall of the obstacle course, grabbing the rope and twisting it around the palm of his hand. Looking straight up, Alex considered.

Wolf had said, quite specifically, to stay off the course. But then... when did Alex ever do as he was told?

Pulling the rope taught, Alex levered himself up the short wall. From his new vantage point, he examined the course ahead of him. It looked quite a bit longer from here than it had from the ground, watching the unit; but he was pleased to find that he remembered most of the obstacles. There was a series of pits and rope swings and beams and bars, separated periodically by wooden walls that got taller as the course progressed.

Hopping down his wall, Alex hit the ground knees bent. He rolled, then set off at a light jog. He ran through tires and army crawled under barbed wire before getting to the next wall. Up and down, then across a beam that was suspended over a mud pit. A rope swing over a pit of ice water, a crawl over a net that kept trying to flip, then another wall.

Alex got to the final wall, scrambling up with an agility similar to a squirrel. At the top of this, the tallest wall, was a bar about the width of his hand stretching to another similar wall.

He was about three quarters of the way across when a piercing yell nearly made him loose his balance.

"What the _bloody fuck_ Cub?"

Alex looked down, zeroing in on the figure of Wolf. The man was glaring at him, hands on his hips. Alex could practically see the steam pouring from the soldiers ears. The rest of K unit stood behind him, showing various levels of concern.

"Hey!" Alex called with perhaps more cheek than strictly necessary. He gave a cheery wave and moved to continue across the beam.

"Not another step, Cub!"

Alex looked back at Wolf in visible annoyance. "Oh I should just stay here, should I?" He gestured at his precarious situation on the elevated bar.

"Yes," Wolf snapped, then said something quietly to his unit. The four soldiers set off towards him; Snake and Fox moved to climb the wall Alex had come up, Wolf and Eagle went for the wall Alex was heading towards.

"Oh come on Wolf, you're being ridiculous," Alex had never had the experience of feeling huffy atop of a bar, suspended over a smelly pit of mud, but that's what was happening now.

"Stay. _Put_." Wolf was halfway up the wall by now.

Now, Alex could have easily stayed where he was for the few seconds it would take his unit to get to him, but... Alex wasn't an invalid. He wasn't in the business of asking for help, even when he needed it. And right now? He didn't need it. He didn't need to be _coddled_.

Alex took a step forward, falling right past the bar. He lashed a hand out, grabbing the bar as he passed and swinging himself forward, clearing the mud pit. He just heard an angry and shocked yell of 'Cub' before he was tucking and rolling on the grass; coming to steady stance not far away.

Alex was feeling rather pleased with himself, then he heard a dull thud from behind him.

Looking round, he saw Wolf a few feet away. The rest of the unit was also making their ways down, all looking low-key pissed off.

But none of them compared to the look on Wolf's face. The only though that Alex had time to process was 'I'm in deep shit' before Wolf tore him a new one.

"What the fuck were you thinking? What made you think that that was anything but a _monumentally stupid idea_?"

Alex paused, tilting his head. "I was just doing the course, Wolf. I've done it before, remember?" He did his best not to add fuel to the fire.

Unfortunately, it didn't take much to fan Wolf's flames. "You've done it _supervised_ before. What if you'd fallen? Or gotten stuck? What was your plan then? Holler and pray someone came to your rescue?"

Alex frowned, "I wasn't planning on falling _or_ getting stuck. I'm not inept."

Wolf growled like his namesake, "I gave you an _order_ , Cub."

"An order, huh? You aren't my boss, Wolf. You're barely my unit leader. I'm not SAS, I'm not under your jurisdiction. Also, I'm _not_ a bloody child, Wolf."

"Except you are, Cub. You're just the only one who doesn't see it! You're a child. A freaking child."

"I'm not. Wolf, look where we are! A soldiers camp for the _elite,_ for _veterans_. I'm a bloody spy, Wolf! I can run your bloody course. I can fight. I can shoot. I can go on missions. And I can do it all without you holding my hand!" Alex took a breath, unclenching his fists from his side. He pulled up a mask of indifference in an attempt to cover his outburst.

His whole unit looked gobsmacked. Obviously they'd known Alex went on missions, but he guessed they hadn't really _known_. He left and came back and he was fine. Just fine. They saw him as a kid. After everything, that's still what they saw.

Alex tilted his head back, looking to the grey, Welsh sky.

"I don't need any safety nets."

* * *

 **Next: Time for a little group therapy.**


	5. First Day in Hell

After Alex's outburst, K unit continued in tense silence. They ran the course for the remainder of the hour, everyone getting their time down by a few seconds.

Alex beat them hands down every time.

At 0700 they ran the course together. Using different maneuvers to make it easier to complete. Alex didn't speak throughout the whole experience. Merely observing and taking his turn when necessary.

Just before 0800, they left, jogging to an open field. Four men were there, A Unit, Alex believed. They were one of the units running the refresher courses this year. Bear, Badger, Crocodile and Swordfish each took a member of K unit. Owl, the leader of B unit had been invited to take on Alex.

Alex recognized Owl from training. Brown hair shorn short, piercing hazel eyes, tan. Partially American if the trace accent was anything to go by.

He'd been a more than competent soldier. Shorter than average, but that never held him back. Still a few inches taller than Alex.

Originally, he'd been with another unit. T unit, if Alex remembered correctly. All but Owl had been binned within the two weeks of Alex being there. He got lumped in with B unit, who'd also had a member binned. Apparently, Owl had shown aptitude in leading, and after making it through training he'd stuck with B unit.

"Ever heard of the Beep Test, kid?"

Alex nodded. "Yes sir." He'd had to run the beep test back when he'd done football at Brooklands. They'd called it the Shuttle Run test back then, the coach had called it the Multi Stage test. Alex thought the professional name was the Fitnessgram Pacer Test.

They'd run it every week until every person on the team could finish it. Alex had been the first to complete it, in the second week. Tom and his friends James and Conner completing it the week after. The whole team had gotten it done in six weeks. Though, Alex guessed the SAS version of it would be a lot harder than one run by schoolboys.

"Okay, I'll go through it anyway. You gotta run from this cone-" Owl indicated a bright orange traffic pylon with his foot, "-to that cone-" he nodded to another pylon twenty five meters away. Five meters farther than a standard Beep Test, "-before the beep. Once you get there, you wait for the next beep, then run back. The beeps will get closer together at each level. twenty levels-" more than the standard thirteen he'd had to run previously. "-no free passes. You miss a beep, you start over. We go until you finish it, or drop dead. Understood?"

"Yes sir."

"Alright, take the position."

Alex placed his right foot just behind the cone. He took a brief look up the field to see his unit already running. Alex was determined not to miss a beep. He knew the more times he restarted, the harder it would be. Better to go full out for the first twenty, than to slack off and have to run more.

"Okay. Ready. Set. Beep," Owl started the timer and Alex took off. He made it to the cone long before the beep, spinning around and waiting.

He'd started regulating his breathing, knowing it would help him in the long run. Beep. The process repeated itself. One length to complete in level one; easy peasy. Two lengths to complete level two. Three lengths in level three and so on. By level eight he was beginning to loose his breath. Level fifteen and he'd started to sweat, panting audibly. He hit level nineteen and he didn't think he'd make it. Nineteen lengths later, he wasn't even waiting for the beeps anymore. He was getting there just in time. Level twenty and Alex was actually tired.

"Beep. You're done, Cub."

Alex let out a whoosh of air. He'd ended up at the far cone and he jogged back to Owl, cooling off a bit.

Less than a minute later and he'd recovered his breath. His unit mates had also finished, he noticed. They were walking around, doing some cool down stretches. With a nod from Owl he followed their lead, stretching out his muscles.

"Almost 0900, Cub," Owl whispered. He was unnervingly quiet for a soldier. Alex gave a nod of thanks, heading to the next activity at a light jog.

The others had clearly got the same message and weren't far behind him.

The rest of the morning went much the same, K unit completed their tasks in utter silence.

When Lunch came around they wouldn't even look at each other.

At the shooting range, they _did_ look at Alex. And at the perfect bullet holes in the center of his targets. Barracuda was looking at him, wide eyed, from across the range. Alex didn't look back at them.

At 1330, they stood outside of office block A, where they would take their psychological evaluations. They were still silent but most of the tension had dissipated. After a long and hard day of training, it was hard to stay angry.

They entered and were greeted by probably the only cheerful place on the entire SAS base. Alex immediately disliked it, and he could tell the others felt the same.

There was a lady at the front desk. She smiled, introduced herself as Fauna and asked them in a chirpy voice to take a seat on the floral print couches. They did.

Alex decided to take the opportunity to examine the room around him. Familiarize himself with the foreign territory. The walls were cut in half horizontally with a light wood dado rail. The top half was a forest green colour, the bottom was covered in pale, leafy designed wallpaper.

There where landscape pictures of Brecons Beacons park strategically placed around the room. The floor was wood planking, the same colour as the dado rail. There was a large, old fashioned chandelier and a few wall lights, giving the room a cozy feeling.

The table in front of Alex had a glass vase filled with wildflowers and an array of magazines that didn't look like they'd interest a SAS soldier at all.

There was a creaking of wood and one of the five doors in the room opened. A slightly plump blond lady bounced into the room, nodding at Fauna the receptionist. Alex guessed she came from a staff room of sorts, Alex glimpsed two other people sitting in the room, drinking what looked like tea.

"Afternoon, Gentlemen! I'm Doctor Patricia Torres. How are you all feeling today?"

A round of grunts and non-committal noises met her words. It didn't put a damper on the Good Doctor's smile, though. Good for her.

"Looks like we got a group of Chatty Cathy's here!"

This time not even a grunt broke the silence.

"Okay then, might as well get underway. As we usually do these four at a time, we don't have enough rooms for all of you-" Alex was about to comment that that's fine I'll just wait here. But Dr. Torres plowed on. "-I'll stay out here with one of you. I've got a..." She glanced at her clipboard, like she hadn't committed it to memory. "Mr. Taylor?"

"That's me," Eagle sounded ecstatic. Not.

"Wonderful! Then Mr. San Luca you're with Dr. Joanna in room one. Mr. Clark room two with Dr. Clintoff. Mr. Daniels room three, Dr. Hizener. And lastly Mr. Rider. Room four with Dr. Flint."

She smiled toothily and waited for them to depart. Eagle gave Alex a look like help me. Alex returned it with a look like sorry dude.

Under the watchful eye of Eagles Shrink, Alex opened the door she had indicated. The room was plain, basic really. The only point of interest was the brightly coloured armchair and couch. And of course the man sitting in the armchair, reading a stack of papers.

Though, interest might have been too strong a word. The man was about as boring as they come. Middle aged, salt and pepper hair, dull blue eyes behind wire spectacles. Vague wrinkles, thin, pale lips, perfectly manicured nails and perfectly plucked eyebrows.

He radiated an energy that Alex did not like. Arrogance and hubris. It reminded Alex of many of the villains he'd taken down over the years. Damian Cray, Desmond McCain and Razim to name a few. All with a sense of superiority, all too willing to underestimate the underage spy. Alex didn't think it would go much better for Doctor Flint than it had for the rest of them.

Without looking up, he spoke. "You must be Alex Rider, I am Dr. Randolph Flint. I'll be evaluating your mental state today. Please, take a seat," he gestured to the couch.

Alex took an immediate dislike to . He decided, in that moment, that this would be the shortest therapy session on SAS record. Feigning cooperation, Alex let the door fall shut behind him and took two long strides to the couch. There was a low glass table between him and Flint that Alex had to be careful not to knock with his knee.

After a few stifling moments of awkward silence, Flint tossed his papers face down on the table in front of them. Not suspicious at all. Alex mentally rolled his eyes.

Outwardly, though, he was the picture of calm and patience. Alex watched Flint mentally note his relaxed state.

"So, Alex, can I call you Alex? This is your first refresher course in a few years, yes?"

"No."

"No? When was the last time you were at Brecons?"

"A few years ago."

A confused look passed over the shrinks face. "Then why did you say no?"

"Your first question. You asked if you could call me Alex."

Comprehension dawned in Flint's eyes. Another mental note. "I see. What would you prefer?"

"I'd prefer you call me nothing, but for the sake of cooperation, Cub will do just fine."

Mental note number three. Check.

"Alright then. Why don't we talk about your job?"

"How about not?"

"And why not, Alex?"

"Don't call me that. Because I'm not about to spill national secrets."

"I assure you, Alex, I've been given full clearance concerning you," Flint's voice was beginning to sound a bit pinched, clearly he wasn't used to difficult patients.

"Don't call me that. I'd like to see your clearance in writing," Alex adopted the voice of an adult talking to a very young child.

"We don't exactly have time for that, Alex," he spread his hands passively.

"Don't call me that."

"Alexander, We really need to be getting on with the session," Alex could hear the patience wearing thin in Flint's voice.

"I dunno, this doesn't feel like a very give and take relationship. Communication is key, Flint. Maybe if you learned that, you wouldn't be _divorced_."

Alex threw open the door to the waiting room, leaving his stunned shrink behind him. The man subconsciously rubbed his ring finger on his left hand that had the faintest tan line from a ring. Eagle was sitting nervously on the edge of his couch, poised for flight. The psychologist was sitting in a green, flower patterned armchair, squinting through her winged glasses at a page of hand printed notes. Already a long list, and Alex had only been gone a couple minutes.

Eagle jumped as Alex entered the room, half rising from the couch clearly eager to not be alone with the Psychologist.

"Hey Cubby. Cub. Hey. Hey Cub. You're out fast. How was your eval?"

Alex gave his signature devilish smirk. "Loads of fun, Flint and I really hit it off. You can expect a happy announcement by the end of the week," he stated, not caring in the slightest what Eagles headshrinker heard. "How bout you?"

Eagle swallowed, his Adam's Apple bobbing up and down. "I don't like shrinks," he whispered.

"Eagle, you're _marrying_ a shrink."

Eagle blushed, taking the point.

Alex walked passed him, taking his seat on the couch and kicking his feet up, taking the remaining space on the couch. Eagle nervously sat on one of the armchairs.

"Alex. We aren't finished yet," Dr. Flint was standing in the doorway holding his clipboard.

"Don't call me that. Yes, we are," Alex turned his interest away from the shrink, examining his nails.  
Flint opened his mouth, but was stopped from talking by Dr. Torres.

"It's alright, Randy. Alex can stay here until the others are done."

Flint opened his mouth again, preparing to protest. But a strong look from Torres cut him off. With a decisive snort, he stepped back and slammed the door. Fauna was still behind her desk, she was trying very hard not to laugh, it seemed.

And so Alex sat observing Eagles therapy session. He'd read Eagle's file long ago, so nothing he said was news to Alex.

At exactly 1500 hours, three doors opened in unison. Wolf, Fox and Snake stepped out and strode to the couches. Alex kicked his feet down, leaving room for Fox and Snake. Wolf took a seat on another chair.

They all walked out of the office building feeling a little stunned. Eagle had a dazed look on his face and Fox looked like he'd been drugged.

Somehow, they had all managed to survive their group therapy session. In fact, Alex felt rather proud of himself. He'd always been an excellent liar, and the art of deflection came with the job, but even he was surprised at how easily he'd managed to evade questions.

Torres didn't seem too thick, but Alex had danced circles around her. Every question got an answer, but Alex hadn't really answered a thing. Whilst walking out, Alex had stolen a glance at Dr. Torres' notes sheet. It was filled with psychological babble and jargon on Wolf, Fox, Snake and Eagle, but there was a suspicious lack of information on Alex himself. Torres hadn't even noticed.

The few notes that she had written were generic and generally unhelpful. Things like 'calm attitude' and 'cooperates well with unit' didn't seem like very deep revelations. But then, that was the point.

When Alex had said that he wasn't going to spill government secrets, he'd meant it.

"Well, that's the last of it," Wolf said gruffly. But even his harsh nature had taken on a sleepy soft tone after such a long day.

"Yippee," Alex replied. It came out slightly more genuine than he'd meant it to, he really was glad to end the day. And by the looks on K units faces, the feeling was mutual.

And thus ended their first day in hell.

* * *

 **Next: Just because K unit accept him, doesn't mean Alex has it easy.**


	6. Well Fuck

_Sixty-nine. Seventy. Seventy-one. Seventy-two._

Alex counted seventy-two tiles on the ceiling of K units barracks. It is the fifth time he's done so in the last hour.

Alex has counted the ceiling tiles, the floor boards, the cracks in the wall; in a moment of desperation he even tried to count the threads in his army-issued blanket.

Alex was bored.

With a silent moan, Alex flipped over onto his stomach. Propping his chin up on his hand, he turned to peer at Wolf and Eagle through half-lidded eyes. Eagle was leaning against the wall, gesturing wildly with his hands at Wolf. Wolf was sitting at his desk, looking at Eagle with mild irritation.

"Wolf, it doesn't work like that! The point of these formations is so that everyone has a partner. The strategies need to be reworked, you can't just stick one person solo each time! You're practically asking for someone to get shot."

"Just asking for you to get shot, Eagle," Alex muttered, though the soldier didn't notice. Snack chuckled at his comment.

Wolf let out an exasperated sigh, "well, we could do a group of three I guess. But that would completely screw formation F." Wolf jabbed his finger at a diagram.

"Fuck formation F. We don't need it," Eagle stated with a wave of his hands.

"And what do you suppose we replace it with?"

Eagle just moaned dramatically, sliding down the wall and putting his head between his knees. He took a deep breath, then popped to his feet.

"I'm done. I am done! Fox, your turn."

Eagle bodily lifted Fox from where he was playing War with Snake on the floor. Fox merely grunted in annoyance as Eagle snatched his deck of cards. Eagle flopped onto the hardwood as Fox leaned over Wolf's shoulder.

Wolf mumbled a few incoherent words to Fox, who replied with dramatic sighs and just inaudible whispers. Wolf turned in his chair, giving Alex his famous glare. Alex stared him down unflinchingly.

"You know, this is all your fault."

Alex smirked, "Yeah, cause I joined your unit for the sole purpose of giving you paperwork."

"I hate you."

Alex laughed, lifting his pillow from the head of his bed and chucking it with deadly accuracy. Wolf batted it out of the air, unamused. Unfortunately, the pillow was flung directly into Eagle, whom, after a yelp of surprise, moodily tossed his cards into the air.

Alex watched as he turned to give Wolf an earful, wishing vaguely that he had some popcorn for the show.

To Alex's disappointment, the show was interrupted by a knock. They all exchanged looks before Snake quickly hopped up to answer the door.

Alex distantly heard the person on the other side of the door say, "A message from the Sergeant, for K unit".

Snake gave a quick reply, then turned to address his now curious unit.

Snake smirked, and instead of reading the letter to them, he simply skimmed it over himself. The occupants of the cabin watched as Snake's eyebrows made a slow ascent up his forehead. By the time Snake finished reading the letter, his eyebrows were in danger of flying off his face all together.

"What is it?" Fox inquired impatiently.

"It would seem..." Snake began, "...that the recruits are coming early..."

There was no reaction. Snake glanced up over the letter.

"... in three days."

Another moment of zero reaction, then the room exploded. Eagle was shouting, Wolf was glaring and groaning, Fox looked like he was going to puke, and Snake was trying madly to calm his unit down.

"What's the big deal?"

The room went quiet. Four pairs of eyes landed on Alex.

"What's the big deal? What's the big deal, Cub? What do you mean 'what's the big deal?'"

Alex shifted uncomfortably. Clearly, he was missing something. He didn't often miss things, and it wasn't something he wanted to make a habit of.

"It's just," Alex started, "we knew they were coming, didn't we? On the letter we first got, it said you guys had been selected to run three weeks of the new recruits training."

Fox sighed, rolling his eyes to the heavens, "Not 'you guys' Cub. Us. We all are supposed to run the training. You see the problem?"

"Well, not really," Alex really did not enjoy being out of the loop, "so I have to hang with you guys too, so what? I can help. I know what I'm doing, you know. Might even be able to teach them a thing or two."

" _We_ know you know what you're doing, Cub," Wolf replied, "but _they_ don't know that you know or that we know that you know."

Eagle gave him a funny look.

"Does it matter?" Alex asked.

"Bloody hell, Cub, of course it matters."

Snake cut in, shooting Fox a dirty look, "look, Cub. Think of it this way. All of us are senior soldiers. We know what we're doing, and we're all used to giving orders. The recruits will respect us, no questions asked. The newbies, they were hand picked for this. They've got plenty of army experience under their belts. Heck, some of them are probably used to giving orders themselves. However, none of them will be used to taking orders from a sixteen year old."

"Oh," Alex thought he finally knew where this was going, "it'll be like last time, won't it."

He wondered why this worry hadn't come up earlier. He thought maybe K unit had been avoiding the problem, naively hoping that that would fix the problem. Of course, putting a time and date to the problem made it harder to ignore.

"In all honesty, Cub, it'll be worse," Wolf said grimly. "Last time, you were on the bottom of the dog pile like the rest of us. This time around, you'll be calling the shots. These guys are soldiers, proud soldiers. They take their job seriously, and they won't appreciate getting bossed around by a kid. I thought we'd have more time to plan, but apparently not."

Alex let out a gust of air, flopping angrily onto his stomach and burying his face into his bed covers.

K unit vaguely heard a muffled, "Well, fuck."

* * *

 **Next: Meet the new recruits**


	7. Points for Creativity

The recruits were back.

Wolf cringed just thinking about it. The last few days had been an absolute mess of preparation, trying to get drills and schedules in order.

Cub, for his part, had been quietly helpful; not unusual for the young spy. Wolf really couldn't gauge how Cub was feeling, but he knew the kid wasn't happy.

Wolf had wanted to approach Cub about it, but the teen had seemed to shut down. He followed them to briefings and kept up with them on drills with no apparent difficulty. He ate and slept and worked, much as he always had, but he was different.

The witty and sarcastic teen they had gotten used to was gone. Cub was once again silent and suspicious, offering only sharp gestures and monosyllabic answers. It reminded Wolf of when K unit had first been assigned to protect Cub, nearly nine months ago.

With the return of the recruits to base Wolf knew he would have to break the silence. Whatever tension Cub (and he) was clinging to would have to be addressed. Immediately.

Unfortunately, drills and skill sessions dominated their time, and downtime had taken a sharp decline with the imminent arrival of the recruits.

Opportunities to talk with Cub were damned near non-existent. Luckily, Wolf didn't have to find a moment; Cub did it for him.

Wolf was going back to the barracks after a final briefing on the recruits' training. It was well after lights out by the time he returned to K units cabin, but that hadn't deterred Cub.

Cub was sitting on the ground outside K-Unit's barracks, staring at the sky, looking like he was counting stars. When he heard Wolf approach he waved him over, eyes still glued on the sky. Wolf knelt next to him, the ground was muddy but Wolf didn't really mind the discomfort.

"It's been a rough while, huh Cub?" He sighed, staring up at the for once clear sky. He took a deep breath, listen to the natural silence for a moment.

"Yeah well, what else is new?" Cub breathed, his eyes still fixed on the night sky.

Wolf looked at Cub in something akin to wonder. Sometimes it was hard to believe Cub was anything more than an average teenager. Other times it was impossible to believe he was anything but the skilled agent and operative that they knew he was.

And sometimes, when Cub let his walls down, you could see both sides. Cub was practically in a trance, face as open as a book. It displayed his exhaustion, his anger, all the inner turmoil that had been turning around in him.

It also displayed a layer of steel. A complete readiness to take whatever came, because Cub knew that bad things were always on the horizon.

Wolf felt a pang of sadness as he recognized the contribution he had made.

God knows that with the imminent threat of the recruits, all Wolf had been doing was making things harder for the kid.

"So the recruits are back."

"Don't worry about it, Wolf," Cub's voice was soft and wistful.

"What? Who says I'm worried?" Wolf snapped automatically. He hated being anticipated.

Cub let out a rueful sort of chuckle, and Wolf had to take a breath. "I say you're worried. It's all over your face. You're worried about how me and the recruits will react to each other."

"Look, Cub..." he started apologetically, not entirely sure what he was apologizing for.

"It's okay Wolf, I get it. You're the Unit leader and it's your job to worry."

"So..."

"So, what I'm saying is, your worry is unnecessary. I can handle the recruits. It's going to suck." Cub straightened his shoulders, his voice suddenly turning steely. "And if they come at me I'm not going to roll over and take it. I will try to be patient Wolf, but I won't take any crap from people who don't know what they're talking about."

Wolf watched Cub closely, looking for any signs of deception, not that he thought he'd recognize any.

Cub's face was a little pale and drawn, but his gaze had turned focused and determined. Wolf relaxed, comfortable with the knowledge that, if it came down to it, the recruits wouldn't stand a chance.

* * *

The next morning Wolf woke up feeling cold and clammy. Like he had woken from a nightmare he couldn't remember. Outside, it was cool and damp, a light fog drifting off the lake.

Wolf, Snake, Eagle, Fox and Cub filed out of the barracks and stiffly headed to breakfast. No words had been exchanged, but the tension in the air was palpable.

When they arrived at the mess hall the recruits had filled the empty benches. Cub kept his eyes forward as he collected his tray from the kitchen staff. The mans gruff "good luck, kid" put a small grin on Cub's face as Eagle led the way to an empty bench beside Q-Unit.

Deliberately or not, Fox had placed himself on Cub's right, conveniently hiding him from most of the recruits. It wouldn't do to have a confrontation quite so early.

Wolf felt the tension fade out of him as one of the recruits gave Cub a curious look before returning to his meal.

K-Unit was assigned to supervise their recruits on the obstacle course at 1400 hours. As the hour approached Wolf could feel the nervous energy returning.

K-Unit marched to the start of the course and waited. Wolf checked their formation; a perfect symmetrical V, with Snake and Eagle on his flanks and Cub and Fox beside them. He periodically clenched and unclenched his fists behind his back to relieve the tension.

At this point, Cub was in plain view, a clear member of the unit, staring stoically ahead.

The recruits jogged up the path and filed into the standard four-by-ten formation. Resisting the urge to glance back at Cub once more, Wolf glared at the soldiers before him. He did his best to look menacing, and by the brief air of unease the recruits portrayed, it worked.

There were forty men in front of them. By the end of the week, eight would be cut. It was K units job to decide who.

They all stood in silence.

The recruits were well trained, but even so, eventually some of them began to shift nervously. They took notice of Cub, who was now in full view. No hiding or avoiding anymore. Some, Wolf noted, had reactions that were less than fleeting.

"At ease!" Wolf barked. "I am Wolf, behind me are Snake, Eagle, Fox and Cub. We are K-Unit! We are your superiors, so let us get one thing straight!" Wolf paused dramatically and glared. After years of dealing with Sergeant Mason, Wolf had mastered the art of barking orders. "You will address every member of this Unit as "sir", and nothing else! You will follow our orders without hesitation! You will show respect and will not question us! You are not in the SAS yet, and failure to follow any of these rules will result in you getting your ass kicked out so hard you'll land in Texas! Am I clear?"

"Sir, yes sir!"

"Good. Welcome to Hell."

* * *

Things were definitely interesting now that the recruits were here. But when wasn't Alex's life interesting?

For the most part they had left him alone, and for that Alex was grateful. He had stood with K-Unit at first and was being careful not to interact with the recruits too often. So far, Alex was proud to say he had left zero opportunity for conflicts.

Of course, it couldn't last. Murphy's law: anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. Alex thought that they should rename the law after him.

The recruits had been at Beacons for a full week now, and eight men had been binned. With more cuts to come tensions were running high. Alex was a good target for the soldiers frustrations. An outlet for grievances that Alex wasn't at fault for. Nerves were frayed and Alex knew a confrontation was imminent.

* * *

Wolf contemplated the newbies.

All in all, he was pretty happy with them. Most of the men were content to watch the teenage enigma from a safe distance. They conducted themselves like professionals, and Wolf thought that a lot of them would make a good fit with the SAS.

However, there were a few hotheads whose curiosity was growing day by day. Wolf knew that these soldiers were a lot like him when he first started in the SAS. Most of them would mellow once the stress of selection ended, but others... well, Wolf wasn't too sure about some of them.

Boar, Dog, Frog and Stag to name a few.

Boar was a brawny soldier from South England that had served with the army for several years. The name Boar was a reflexion of his tough skin and permanent scowl with tusk-like incisor teeth.

He was cherry picked because of his leadership qualities and was almost a shoo-in to one day lead a unit. The only problem was he knew it, it made him arrogant and indignant. Boar was a leader, and being led by a kid wasn't an easy pill to swallow.

Dog was a good soldier, a fantastic one, in fact. He had been in the army for two years before getting picked up by SO. His name was an inside joke, that by leaving the army for SO he had 'lain down with the dogs' so to speak.

He'd had a spotless record with Special Operations for six months before getting invited to the SAS. But his time at SO had made him suspicious and maybe a bit too curious for his own good. He hadn't shown any aggression towards Cub, but his curious and calculating stares were enough to make Wolf worry.

Frog was from Manchester. He had joined the army right out of high school and had worked his way up quickly. Wolf thought he was called Frog because of how quickly he had hopped to the top, but he wasn't sure. He was at the top of the game in the regular army, and SAS was his clear next step. If rumours were anything to go by, Frog was hoping to get inducted into the Parachute Regiment.

He worked hard, often staying overtime on the courses despite having little down time already. It was clear that Frog resented Cub for seemingly skipping to the top, while he was fighting for a spot.

Lastly was Stag. A Liverpudlian that had taken a quick dislike to Cub. Stag had apparently applied for the SAS twice before, but had been rejected because of anger management issues.

Meanwhile, he had worked his way up in the regular army. He took anger management courses and was eventually given the status of 'completely rehabilitated' and 'not a threat'; a clean bill of health. He became such a highly recommended soldier that the SAS had accepted him. Stag had the same God complex that some soldiers acquired, and this made him dislike Cub extensively.

Stag was less than thrilled that a kid was giving him orders. Even though Cub avoided directly ordering the recruits, he seemed to take his very existence as a personal insult.

Cub's presence had thrown the recruits for a loop. Some of them couldn't seem to comprehend that a child could do what they did and better.

* * *

Wolf and the rest of K unit stood at the obstacle course, observing the recruits. They were going through in groups of four, mimicking a SAS unit.

Most of them were excellent soldiers individually, but as a team they needed work. Soon, Wolf would have to sort them into proper units. They would have to work with their unit for the remainder of the course, and Wolf knew that a soldier's selection unit could make or break his chances in the SAS.

Most selection units, like his own, stuck together long after training ended. There was sometimes about a selection unit that simply couldn't be replaced.

So drills like these were very important early on. They had to deduce who worked well with who, which personalities were compatible, what qualities each soldier possessed that could complement or boost up another.

Wolf glanced at Cub. While the rest of K unit was spread out, shouting abuse at the recruits just to see if they could take it, Cub stood off to the side.

He held a clipboard and was making quick notes, his eyes never leaving the trainees. Wolf had given Cub the main job of deducing each soldier's dominant skills, and then sorting them into their specialty. It was Cubs job to determine who would lead units, who would specialize in medicine or communications or tech or sharpshooting. It was Cub's job to figure out which personalities would be combined to make a working unit.

Wolf thought Cub was more than up to the job, but the recruits seemed to notice Cub's keen eye. Some of them clearly resented being judged, especially by a teenager.

Wolf sighed, it didn't matter what the recruits thought. Cub was the most observant of all of them, and he was the right man for the job. The newbies would simply have to bite their tongues and get over it.

Wolf peeked at his watch, it was nearly 11:30. Recruits didn't get the same breaks as the senior units, but they had the same meal schedule. And it was almost lunch. Wolf drew a huge breath, ready to bellow at the recruits.

His unit quickly followed suit, herding the soldiers to the dining hall for lunch.

Alex laughed over his lunch, listening to the not so subtle chatter of the recruits. They were beyond interested in him, and were currently theorizing and casting him sidelong glances.

It was amazing the things people came up with, and oddly reminiscent of his first time at BB. And while all the chatter behind his back wouldn't win the recruits any points with him, he had to give them points for creativity.

* * *

 **Next: we all knew the tentative peace wouldn't last.**


	8. What the Fuck Just Happened?

The first week or so was physically demanding. It was used to weed out the good soldiers from the exceptional. The SAS only had room for the best of the best, the elite.

In week one, it was completely pass-fail. The bottom eight, no matter how good they were, got binned. Now, it got a bit more complicated. This is where the skill difference between SAS and regular army really showed. It was still very physical, of course, but now it required brain as well as brawn.

They had introduced the assault course, singularly and as a team. Obstacle courses. Interactive seminars. Strategies and planning.

Today, they were introducing guns.

In the SAS, however, it was a lot more than point and shoot. These soldiers needed to know their gun inside and out. They had to shoot it, clean it, recognize and fix problems. They had to be proficient in a multitude of different firearms. The gun was merely an extension of them.

* * *

Alex meandered over to the far side of the range, snatching up a Russian-made hand gun on the way. He snapped a magazine in place, then plopped cross legged at the end of the firing range.

It was early in the morning, so the veteran soldiers were just getting up for parade. The recruits however… not so lucky. Alex had watched K unit knock down their barracks doors and hustle the group of unsuspecting soldiers into the pre-dawn morning.

Now, Alex sat facing away from them as K unit explained the circuit. Wolf would take one group and teach them about heavy artillery (the man's love for machine guns and grenades was disturbing yet oddly admirable).

Eagle would be in the long-range shooting area, covering everything from how to spot a sniper to how to shoot like one.

Snake had claimed the fenced off area in way of medical training. Despite any pre-considered specialties, all recruits would learn the standard treatment for bullet wounds.

Fox was in the smaller range, not far from Alex. He was going over handguns - seemingly a simple job, until you realize that the SAS use dozens of different handguns.

K unit had originally thought Alex would have nothing to do - until the Sergeant suggested he demonstrate instinctive shooting.

After Alex had shown his skill as a marksman, K unit had determined he would be something of a private tutor. Any recruit that needed a bit of correction would be sent to him. It would make the process a lot faster, and would be mean more one on one time with recruits than ever.

Gunshots started to ring out around around the field. Alex cocked his gun, letting off a few shots from his sitting position. Perfect bulls eyes, as usual.

It was maybe ten minutes before a soldier was sent over. Alex recognized him as Raccoon. Small for a soldier - but that's not what made him stand out. The man was absurdly happy. Alex had never heard of a happy recruit until Raccoon. He was a camp favourite among the recruits, Alex thought he was a bit like Eagle; cracking jokes all the time and smiling.

"Sir." Raccoon nodded at him, clearly restraining a smile. (Gotta be professional, after all).

Alex popped up from his position on the ground. Time to get to work.

A few soldiers circulated to Alex over the next hour. Most just needed minor corrections in technique. Adjustments in footing and hand positions, grip and stance.

There was a slight lull in the stream of soldiers sent his way. Alex took a few more shots, taking the opportunity to practice.

He emptied his gun, taking a second to marvel his handiwork. Bulls eyes all the way through. He nodded in satisfaction.

Tucking his gun into his holster, Alex tuned an ear to the other groups. Wolf's gruff voice preceded any others, Alex was in awe of how many cuss words the man could put in one sentence.

Eagle was too far away to hear, but the pop of his long range rifles made it to Alex's ears.

Fox was silent; a quick glance saw him waltzing around the recruits, smacking them with a baton to adjust their stance and aim.

Looking past Fox, Alex saw Snake. The man was clearly frustrated by the lack of medical talent in the current recruits.

As he watched, Snake waved Fox over. Fox snapped an order at his recruits, leaving them and jogging over to his unit mate.

A flash of movement brought his attention back to his post. A recruit - Crow - was staring at him sheepishly, a sniper rifle dangled awkwardly at his side.

Fox stopped next to Snake. The medic was in need of a partner for a demonstration and (according to Snake himself) none of the recruits were good enough to even play a corpse.

Getting set up, he went to lay down on the slightly damp grass. First though, he glanced back at his own group of recruits. They were firing off bullet after bullet.

Raking his eyes over the men, he caught an imperfection. Taking a deep breath, he shouted across the field.

"Bloody hell, Stag! I've seen children with better aim!" The disgust in Fox's voice was evident. "In fact, maybe a kid could teach you a thing or two. You're completely useless, go be Cub's problem!"

The recruit (after locating where the angry order had come from) nodded swiftly, snapping a hasty salute and setting off to Cub's little corner. Glancing over, Fox watched Cub send away the last soldier he was with and turn his focus on Stag.

Alex laughed silently to himself as Crow walked awkwardly back to Eagle. No wonder the young recruit couldn't shoot straight - he's left eye dominant! Which, naturally, would make him a left handed shooter. Poor guy's been shooting right handed since he'd been in the army.

The man's aim was fine short range, but the error was noticeable when Crow was given a long range gun. Lucky they caught it before the soldier got too ingrained in the habit. It would be tough for him to learn a whole new way to shoot, but better in the long run.

Alex shifted his attention to the approaching soldier, cringing internally when he recognized Stag. The soldier was not his biggest fan.

He looked past Stag, trying to catch Fox's eye. The other soldier, however, seemed to be taking a nap while Snake mummified him with medical wrap.

Oh well, Alex isn't here to make friends anyway. He's here to make soldiers.

"Stag," he nodded, gesturing to the targets. "Take five shots, so I can assess you."

Stag gritted his teeth, but obeyed the command. Alex was briefly reminded of something the Sergeant had said; they don't have to like it, they just have to do it.

Stag took five shots. The first one, Alex watched the man's face, how he aimed and where he was looking. The second, he watched the man's hands and grip. Third he watched the footwork. Fourth he took a step back and watched the soldier as a whole. And for the last shot, Alex watched his hands again - confirming what he had seen the first time.

He stepped up to the soldier, signaling for him to flick the safety on the eight chambered handgun.

"Your stance is fine, it's your grip that's throwing you off." He stepped a little closer, wary of getting in the man's personal space, but needing to correct his grip. "Loosen up a bit. Recoils a bitch, but throttling it won't help."

Alex stepped back, barely catching Stags whispered words. "I know how to shoot a gun, fucking kid." Stag lifted the firearm, taking another shot and missing horribly.

He raised an eyebrow at that. Alex wasn't exactly sure how things worked in the army, but he was quite certain that soldiers did not speak to their superiors that way. Alex knew they didn't like it, but he was their superior.

"Either take my advice or get the fuck off the range," he said it quietly, but with authority. He let his voice carry, without raising it. A snort could be heard from a nearby recruit as Alex's voice reached them.

Stag flinched - or maybe it was closer to trembling with anger? - and glared at him. "The hell did you just say to me, kid?"

Alex sighed. The man was looking for a fight; he should walk away, be the bigger person. Anyway, antagonizing a trained soldier with a loaded weapon? Not smart. He shouldn't even bother engaging the man.

"Fucking twerp."

Then again, when did Alex ever do what he should?

"You're an idiot," Alex said blatantly. "You think you can make your way through SAS without taking the advice you're given? That's a one way ticket to being binned. So either get your head out of your arse, it's not a hat, or get the hell off this range."

The glint of anger in the man's eyes was all the warning Alex needed. He saw the punch coming, probably before Stag even realized he'd done it.

Grabbing the soldiers wrist, he twisted it and stepped forward. He leveled his free hand at Stag's face, thrusting his palm upward. He was rewarded with the satisfying crunch of cartilage as the recruits nose was shattered.

Stag stumbled back, blood dripping down his face and reflex tears clouding his eyes. The man dashed a hand over his face, looking at Alex with evident anger.

Over the roar of adrenaline, Alex heard the group of nearest recruits - Fox's - take notice of the fight. None of them would get there in time though.

Stag lurched forward, as if he was going to try hitting him again, then seemed to remember the gun in his hand.

The look in Stag's eye's quickly went from angry to manic. Alex realized that the situation needed to be defused, and quickly, before Stag did something he would regret.

Lunging forward, Alex wrapped a hand around the barrel of the automatic, pointing it away from him and towards the ground.

As Stag tried to yank the gun from Alex, his finger tightening on the trigger, Alex darted forward. Keeping one hand on the gun, he grabbed Stag's forearm with the other, twisting until he heard a snap.

He then slammed his heel on the soldiers instep. The man reflexively released his grip and stepped back, clutching his wrist to his chest. Alex flung the gun back, letting it hit the ground somewhere behind him. He heard Fox storming over, but Stag was still somehow on the offence.

Alex slammed the heel of his hand into Stag's already broken nose. The man stumbled back, clutching his bloody face, his eyes wide and furious. Alex twisted quickly, and lashed out with a spinning back kick to Stag's solar plexus. The soldier was thrown onto his back, where he lay gasping for breath.

Breathing deeply, Alex looked up at the crowd that had assembled around him.

Another recruit had quickly darted forward and grabbed the gun from the ground, flicking the safety just as Fox and Snake arrived, closely followed by Wolf and Eagle.

The range was suddenly quiet. All the recruits had followed their supervisors and were now clustered around him. K-Unit were staring at the unconscious recruit on the floor. Wolf opened his mouth to issue an order, or perhaps a profanity, but another voice beat him to it. From the back of the crowd of recruits, a loud, authoritative voice yelled, "What the fuck just happened?"

* * *

 **Next: Better get Alex out of harm's way… by putting him into harm's way.**


	9. Kid Deserves a Break

Following the incident at the firing range, Stag had been carried unconscious to the infirmary. Sanders had dragged Cub to the infirmary as well.

He briskly ordered Wolf and the recruits back to work as he yanked Cub away from the crowds. K unit obeyed, drilling the recruits for a few more painful minutes before realizing that it was useless. Their focus had evaporated.

Knowing that the Sergeant would want to speak to them soon, Wolf and his team dismissed the recruits and went to wait outside the office barracks. K unit spoke in hushed whispers, trying to get the story in order. Wolf hadn't seen the fight himself - not properly - but he would be the one answering questions.

The call came for K-Unit to come to the office and there they were, lined up and ready for a beating. It reminded Wolf of being sent to the principal's office as a child, a situation he was all too familiar with.

Sanders was worked up like a whirlwind. He paced like a caged tiger, barely looking at k unit as they came to rest in front of him. After a few calming breaths, and a few more laps of the office, the Sergeant turned to them.

"We're bloody lucky that Cub pulled his punches."

Okay... not what they expected.

"Sir?" Wolf asked.

"Cub is fine, not a scratch, actually" Sanders deliberately misunderstood him, "Stag is fine as well, all his injuries were superficial."

Wold nodded, wondering when the questions would come in.

"That's all, you are dismissed."

A moment of shock; they hadn't been asked a single question.

"I got everything I need to know from Cub." Sanders answered their unasked question.

Wolf snapped a quick salute and led his unit out.

"What the..."

* * *

Alex heard K unit long before he saw them. By the time they had returned to the cabin, they seemed to have worked themselves into a frenzy.

Alex lay on his bunk, counting the ceiling tiles in habit. He was on 56 when Eagle smacked the door in, distracting him. K unit lined up, looking every bit the interrogation squad.

"What the fuck was that Cub?!" Wolf, ever the fearless leader, was first up to bat. Alex sighed internally and swung his legs off the bed.

"I was defending myself," Alex said wearily. He was so tired of defending himself, physically and verbally.

Not to mention that K-Unit's yo-yo approach was giving him a migraine. From supportive to invasive and back so fast it could turn heads.

"You attacked a recruit! You could have killed him!" Eagle exclaimed.

"Better him than me." Alex grumbled, keeping his expression neutral. He didn't understand why they were so pissed off, but he didn't want to give them any more reason to fly off the handle.

His answer, apparently, did not help his cause.

"Are you kidding me? Are you freaking kidding me? Better him than you? You assaulted a man, Cub!" Snake, usually the voice of calm and reason, was riled up with the rest of them. They were literally taking turns attacking him. It was remarkably civilized, all things considered.

"He tried to shoot me! He assaulted me!"

"You don't know that!" Fox snapped.

Alex looked at Fox in disbelief. Stag had _had a gun_. Alex knew a threat when he saw one.

"For Christ's sake, I knew what I was doing!"

"What the fuck does that mean?" Wolf's turn again.

Alex rolled his eyes, getting visibly frustrated now, "It means I could have killed him, but I didn't. I barely gave him a concussion."

Alex could have killed Stag with the first nose strike, had he been inclined to do so. They were being so melodramatic. Stag's injuries were superficial.

"You can't have known that! You can't have known that he'd be fine!"

"Except I did, Wolf!" Alex had to shout to be heard. Why didn't they just listen to him?

"How the fuck can you know that!?"

"Because it's my job you moron's!" he yelled, standing to look the soldier's dead on.

"What kind of job tells you that?"

Alex felt a crashing calm, he slumped slightly and lowered his voice to barely more than a whisper, "You know."

K unit fell silent, as if realizing for the first time exactly who they were talking to. It was in that moment they realized they had royally fucked up.

In a normal situation, not that any of this could be considered normal, the offending party would apologize. Once you realize that you're wrong, you admit it. Say you're sorry. Make nice.

But K unit, and especially Wolf, weren't used to being wrong. They were a bunch of emotionally and socially stunted children that didn't know how to apologize.

They did, however, know how to explode. Alex watched the build up of emotions in their eyes.

First, the guilt and realization that they were in the wrong. Quickly replaced by confusion, then anger, then vindictive fury. Alex pictured an old Bugs Bunny cartoon when the characters turn red and steam billows from their orifices.

Just as K unit was about to blow their tops, Alex stood up.

"Just don't."

And calmly exited the cabin.

* * *

Alex walked away from the cabin as fast as his legs could carry him. His mind was racing. What was wrong with them? All he'd done was defend himself. They'd seen him fight before, he'd gone off on missions. It wasn't news to them that he could take care of himself. Nor was it news that he was willing to take care of himself.

After everything that had happened in the last few months, (the Arae, the staged kidnapping), he'd thought K unit would want him to defend himself.

Alex had thought that they'd understood. That perhaps in some part of their minds they comprehended even slightly what it meant to be a spy at 14. Had they expected him to just stand there and let Stag run him through? Yeah right.

Alex had been so engrossed in his thoughts that it took him a second to recognize the sound of running footsteps behind him. He halted immediately and spun a 180, not bothering to conceal his scowl.

"What?" He snapped at the soldier behind him.

"Wow there, Cubby. Cool it. Sarge wants to see you in his office."

Alex took a breath. The soldier in front of him, Raven, clearly not the source of his rage. Seeing an innocent face made it difficult to remain mad.

Alex nodded calmly.

"Thanks Raven."

"No problem, kid. Take it easy." Raven replied, patting his shoulder as he passed and jogged off towards the lake.

Alex readjusted his path to take him to the office of Sergeant Mathias Sanders.

"So, Cub. How are you enjoying your stay?"

Sergeant Sanders looked like he knew exactly how he'd been enjoying his stay, but Alex decided to tell him any way.

"Awful. Just awful. You guys are the worst hosts ever."

Sanders raised an eyebrow expectantly.

"Oops. I meant awful _sir_ ," Alex said with as little sarcasm as possible. The look on the Sergeant's face told him he hadn't quite pulled it off.

"Well, then. Must be your lucky day kid. MI6 sent this over for you, joint Op. with the CIA. They said it was urgent."

"Isn't it always?" Alex picked up the manila folder that Sanders had flicked towards him.

"Read it on the helicopter out, Cub. You've got places to go."

Alex frowned at the folder, quickly opening to the first page to find his destination. _Morocco, sounds like fun_. He flipped it shut again.

"Why now?"

"Because you're needed now. Anyway, after the recent... Altercation... I think it's best if you go off the radar for a bit."

"Anything I'll need?"

"Just your go bag. Everything else will be provided by a..." The sergeant glanced at his notice. "... Mr. Smithers, I believe."

Alex gave a brief nod. Sanders gave a return nod, and Alex took that as his cue to leave. He gave a half sarcastic salute and spun on his heel. Just as he put his hand on the doorknob, Sanders called out.

"Oh and Cub." Alex froze and glanced calmly over his shoulder. "Don't forget to inform your unit."

Alex let a grimace spread across his face.

"I'd rather not, sir. K unit has been less than welcoming now a days."

Sanders smirked knowingly. "They're still your unit, Cub. It may not be ideal, but it is protocol. Let them know you're going."

"Sir, yes sir."

The door clicked shut behind him.

* * *

With an indecipherable calming breath, Alex swung open the door to K Units bunks. He strode in full of fake confidence and mock bravado.

The other members of K unit where sprawled stiffly on their respective bunks. As Alex walked in, they jerked up, mouths opening with words on the tips of their tongues. Alex cut them off before any noise could be uttered. He didn't want to hear what they had to say, whether it be apologies or more incrimination's.

"I'm leaving. Urgent mission sanctioned by MI6, it can't wait."

He snatched his go-bag from under his bunk and powered out of the room.

"Cub- wait!"

"It can't wait."

* * *

Wolf felt like shit. Physically, mentally, and hell, even spiritually.

He couldn't believe what an absolute douche he was, yelling at Cub. In the moment, it had been the logical thing to do. Cub, a small 16 year old kid, had provoked a fight with a man with a gun. And somehow, little Cubby had actually just whooped a grown man's (not to mention army veteran's) ass.

Wolf was surprised to say the least.

Now that he'd had a chance to calm down, however, it was hard to stay mad at Cub. From what the other recruits (those close enough to see the fight) said, it wasn't Cub's fault. Yes, maybe Cub had let his mouth loose when he should have kept it shut, but Cub hadn't started the fight

Wolf realized that he had, for lack of a better term, fucked shit up. Now Cub was gone off to who the hell knew where, and they probably wouldn't hear from him for weeks on end.

Wolf sighed, he realized now that Cub was right. But, as usual, it was too little too late. In hindsight, Wolf probably knew that Cub was innocent when K unit brutally ripped into him. It's easy to be mad at someone when they're right in front of you, harder when they've been sent on a highly classified mission for an indeterminable amount of time in some godforsaken part of the world.

"Wolf?"

Wolf looked up from his spot on the ground. He was sitting in the dry mud, the same place he and Cub had had their first proper heart to heart. Wow, when had he become so sentimental?

"Yeah Eagle?"

Eagle shifted nervously. "We gotta go. Recruits need supervision on the assault course."

Wolf sighed, picking himself off the dry ground and dusting himself off.

"Let's go."

* * *

Alex vaulted up into the helicopter. He was barely given a second to buckle in before the pilot was whiring the engines and they were high in the sky.

He clutched the op. folder to his chest, tucking his go-bag under his seat. He didn't really mean to, but he found himself gazing down on Brecon Beacons.

He watched the helipad shrink to the size of a tea saucer, saw the barracks fade to mere specks on the hills. The sound of guns and shouts was easily drowned out by the roaring helicopter blades.

For a moment, Alex felt vaguely guilty, though he wasn't sure what for. Maybe he felt bad for leaving K unit in such haste. He probably wouldn't see them for a few weeks at least.

Alex shut down that line of thinking, focusing instead on the fading hills. The training camp slowly faded, surrounded by dense trees. Alex turned away from the shrinking park and flipped open his file. His sole focus was the mission.

* * *

Wolf felt miserable. The longer he stayed out with the recruits, the shorter his temper became. He was snappy and irritable and he knew it.

The recruits at least had the good sense to avoid Wolf like the plague, which was a blessing in itself. But even K unit had tread around Wolf like he would explode at any moment. Not that they were wrong. In Wolf's black mood, he could combust at any time now.

As if to add insult to injury, it was a beautiful day. The sky was clear, the horizon visible for miles, the sun beating down pleasantly. It was a blessing of Mother Nature, especially this close to the end of fall and the start up of winter. Yet Wolf could enjoy none of it. All the clear skies meant was that Wolf got a front row centre seat to Cub's retreating helicopter. It flew off towards the horizon, winking out of existence as Wolf observed.

"God," Wolf whispered to himself. "Just let Cub come out of this okay. Kid deserves a break."

* * *

 **Next: Morocco is less that beautiful this time of year.**


	10. I Wanna Go Home

**Amnay is Alex's alias. It is a traditional Berber name with the closest English translation being Rider.**

 **The other names are all Berberian and have meanings. None, however, are relevant to the story.**

* * *

"Private Amnay!" A gruff voice called out, snapping Alex to alertness.

"Corporal Ilayetmas, sir!" He didn't hesitate in rising to his feet and snapping a sharp salute. The kids he was playing cards with erupted from their position on the floor as well.

The Corporal stalked up to the four straight backed soldiers. The man didn't speak for a long moment, leaving Alex and his companions to hold their saluting position.

"Private Amnay," the man repeated, speaking in Morocco's indigenous language: Berber, "you will be accompanying Sergeant Tariq to the port station in Rabat. Report to Hanger E. Dismissed."

Corporal Ilayetmas turned sharply on one heel and strode out of the room. Alex quickly dropped his salute, snatching a small duffel bag from under his cot. His companions returned to their seated position on the floor, redealing the cards to accommodate the loss of one player. Alex gave them a swift nod farewell, which they barely heeded, before making his way out of the cramped barrack room.

Before exiting, he grabbed his army issued HK416 assault rifle off a hook by the door.

Alex walked purposefully down a series of corridors, making his way unchallenged to the deployment garage.

No one he passed stopped to ask what a child, for Alex was obviously a child, was doing in a military base. Nor was the rifle in his hands given a second glance. This place was a world away from Brecon Beacons, where his every move was questioned and scrutinized due to his age; different didn't always mean better, though. These people were no strangers to child soldiers.

Alex arrived at Hangar E in record time, spotting Sergeant Tariq easily. The Sergeant was a beast of a man; heavily built with muscles rippling under his army fatigues. The man was twice the size of anyone else in the room, though that might be because most of the rooms occupants weren't any older than eighteen.

Alex came to rest next to the group of kids, listening to the heavy thuds of people filing in behind him.

"We will be making our way into Rabat. You will all be given a section. Recruitment is priority. You will report back to the designated meeting place at exactly 2200 hours or you will be left behind. Understood?"

"Yes sir, Sergeant Tariq, sir!" They all barked in unison.

Tariq nodded his acknowledgment and led the way into the army transport van. Alex was first one in, sitting directly across from Tariq. The rest of the kids filled in in alphabetical order. The second the last kid's foot left the ground, the van was driving off.

Alex examined the kids around him. Eight, including himself; all together, there was five girls and three boys.

The youngest was a thirteen year old boy, Private Ziri, who sat at the end of the truck. The oldest, an eighteen year old girl by the name of Private Damya. The only other name Alex recognized was the girl to his immediate right, Private Basil, who was fifteen and in Alex's barrack. The other four looked to be around fifteen or sixteen, which was the average age in the base.

The ride to Rabat was uneventful, but stressful. There were no attacks on their convoy, but everyone in the van clutched their rifles tight, knowing that an attack could come. They weren't exactly in the posh part of town.

Despite the fact that it was a five hour drive, no one slept.

Everyone was on edge, bouncing in their seats with no seat belts to restrain them. Most of them looked too scared to blink for too long, let alone rest.

When they finally arrived in Rabat, Alex was given a section at the ocean tip of the Rabat-Casablanca border. On the way, Alex passed one of the many MI6/CIA stations that had been set up to keep an eye on Alex. He didn't even glance at the old, worn out market stand as he passed by.

The walk to his post was long, but mostly uneventful. Few people were out this late at night, and most of the homeless population had hideouts farther inland. It was when Alex made it to the dock where his section started that he got suspicious. Alex had been to Rabat often enough on recruiting missions, but more often than not, they stayed inland.

Rabat was one of the poorest cities in the world and had its fair share of street kids. However, the recent boom in the fishing market meant that the coastal part of Rabat had just enough money for street rats to be forced to steer clear.

Yet, here Alex was, standing next to a dock with no recruitable children in sight...

If Alex wasn't so used to being sniped at, he would have died. If Alex hadn't recognized that feeling, the prickle of hairs standing up on the back of his neck as someone stared him down through a scope, he would have died. As it was, Alex did not die. No, thanks to Alex's quick reflexes, he was very much alive; alive and floating in rubbish in the Atlantic Ocean. Bullets slammed through the wood of the dock above him as Alex slowly swam to shore.

The water was icy and dark, the shock Alex felt when he'd thrown himself off the dock had dulled to a feeling of numbness. He knew he had to get out of here and get dry, or risk hypothermia.

Alex crouched on the narrow strip of shore, still in the shadow of the dock. The cascade of bullets had stopped, he noted, but he knew they could start again at any moment.

What had happened? How had they figured out that Alex was a spy? He couldn't think of an instant when he hadn't been completely in character.

Whatever the case, he had definitely been made. He pulled up the sleeve of his army jacket, revealing a small tattoo. It was a simple design of a moon and star; the symbol of the Ottoman Empire that later became associated with Islam, which of course was the dominant religion in Morocco. The army hadn't thought the tattoo was odd or suspicious. They were, naturally, wrong. Good ol' Smithers had come through for him, as always, and hidden a tracker under the design.

Alex licked the tattoo (trying to ignore the fact that his arm was covered in garbage contaminated water) and watched the ink dissolve. The salivary amylase in his mouth broke down the chemicals of the tattoo, sending a distress signal straight to his mission handler.

Another bullet hit the water were a cloud had made a flicker of movement on the surface. Water exploded upward, light from the one unbroken lamppost hitting the droplets and refracting outward.

The cool ocean water splattered onto Alex, reminding him of just how cold he was. Time to get out of here.

Alex walked in a crouch, making his way along the edge of a sea wall. When he judged himself far enough away, he propped his rifle above the capping of the wall. He twisted the barrel, letting a bit of light catch on the smooth metal. Any sniper worth their pay would have seen the glint and shot.

When no shot came, Alex judged it safe to emerge. He placed his gun above him, then heaved himself over the wall.

The gun, thoroughly soaked with seawater, would be useless; but Alex was still reluctant to part with it. He scoped up the hunk of metal (for that's all it was now), slinging the strap over his shoulder and positioning the bulk of the gun on his back.

A meager protection against speeding bullets, but better than nothing.

Alex scanned his surroundings, picking out the sniper on the roof of an ocean side factory. The scope of their gun was trained on the spot Alex had dove overboard. Even in the dim lighting, Alex recognized the silhouette of Private Basil.

A fifteen year old girl had just tried to put a bullet in his skull.

It would be a tough journey to the last MI6/CIA outpost, but he would have to make his way there before daylight broke, or find another place to hunker down. In the sun, there was no way he would get past the highly trained, albeit young, soldiers.

Alex turned up the coast, heading vaguely north. There was a shout from behind him, a voice he thought he recognized.

Alex was being hunted.

* * *

Alex was running.

Not that that should come as a surprise, Alex spent a significant percentage of his time running.

There was a gunshot and he threw himself around a corner. Brick and concrete rained down around him as Alex lost his balance and fell hard onto the pavement. It probably saved his life too, Alex thought as another bullet whizzed overhead.

Then he was up again, putting on an extra burst of speed. Trying desperately to keep ahead of his pursuers.

His knee must've pulsed with pain from the fall and his wrists should've hurt from catching himself, but those sensations vanished in the adrenaline-induced haze, clouding and yet sharpening his senses.

They'd hurt later, if he survived that long.

As another bullet slammed into a nearby buildings brickwork, Alex didn't expect he would be surviving that long.

Another gunshot, Alex wondered if anyone could hear. Most likely they could, he concluded; they were running through a mostly residential area by now. Alex doubted, however, that anyone had bothered to call the police.

For one, most of the citizens of Rabat were more than used to the sound of gunshots. Furthermore, most of the citizens wouldn't have access to a phone. Additionally, if any of the inhabitants of Rabat had a phone, they wouldn't call the police. The police around here were as corrupt as the army Alex was infiltrating.

"Bloody hell," he breathed, "I'm so over this. I wanna go home."

* * *

 **Just wanted to let you all know that while I used Morocco and I did try to keep it fairly geographically accurate (thanks Google Maps): this whole chapter falls under fiction. I did very little research. Originally, I used Morocco thinking that I wouldn't bother coming up with a mission. When I did make this chapter, I was going to change the name. I decided to keep it the same (every name I came up with sounded cheesy and eww). Anyway, I hope no one is offended by the inaccuracies in this chapter!**

 **Next: Our favourite soldiers return! K unit to the rescue!**


	11. Ouch

"K unit! My office! Now!"

Wolf's head snapped up from where he was correcting (yelling at) a recruit. Sergeant Sanders was at the door to the seminar hall where K unit was instructing the recruits on how to pack a parachute. Sanders gave an angry jerk of his head, galvanizing K unit into action.

"Nobody touch anything until we're back!" Wolf snapped, smacking a recruit upside the head when he reached for the parachute again.

K unit quickly exited the room, calling over the nearest senior soldier they saw.

"Hey Owl, mind keeping an eye on the recruits? Sergeant wants us."

Owl's large eyes flitted to where Sanders was angrily stalking away. He sucked in a sharp breath.

"Yeah I got 'em. Good luck, I think you might need it."

Wolf nodded, exchanging nervous glances with his unit. They quickly jogged off after the Sergeant.

"Is this about Cub, sir?" Eagle asked tentatively.

It had been two and a half weeks since they saw their favourite spy, and their moods reflected it. They are annoyed and irritated and worried.

"Doesn't seem like there's much that isn't about Cub," Sanders sounded on the edge of exasperation. "Agent Rider," he said it like the words burnt his tongue, "sent out a distress signal, two days ago."

"And we're only being called in now?"

"Yes," Sanders' voice dripped with disapproval, "the mission controller was under the impression that Cub could make it to a safe house unaided. Which he did, of course - this morning. They didn't want to 'tip their hand' apparently."

"If Cub is safe, why are they calling us?" Snake asked.

"Cub's mission was to infiltrate an army that trains street kids. He was supposed to get the schematics of the place, the numbers and weapon stats. He managed it brilliantly, I hear. So now, we get to do clean up. Cub will lead you and two other units in storming the place. They want to get the kids out, and the adults taken into custody."

Sanders nodded them away. After a sharp salute, K unit made their way out.

"Just to warn you," Sanders said monotonously, "it sounds like Cub is in the infirmary."

Wolf shut the door a little harder than necessary.

* * *

The helicopter blades slowed to a low drone. A hollow thud reverberated through the cabin as the copter planted itself on the ground.

A moment later, the doors were flung open by the pilot. The man said nothing, and neither did K unit. They were all still wearing noise cancelling headsets, so communication wouldn't have worked well anyway.

Wolf led the way out of the helicopter and over to the hanger exit. A woman was standing there, clearly waiting for them. She had medium length black hair, piled into a tight bun atop her head. She wore a dull gray conservative power suit, matched with sensible footwear. She held 3 folders in her grasp. The front one read: Classified: Agent A. Rider: Operation Toy Soldier.

"K unit? My name is Catherine Hall. I'm the MI6 head for this mission, I was sent by Mrs. Jones."

Wolf believed her immediately. With the drab appearance and the blunt manner, Wolf had almost mistaken her to be Mrs. Jones herself.

This was the lady that had left Cub to fend for himself.

"Where is Cub?" Fox quickly stepped up to the plate, anxious to see their youngest unit member.

"This way." Agent Hall gestured down the corridor, leading them through a series of passages and side channels that Wolf would have no hope of navigating on his own.

The main safe house was converted from an old tube system, it would seem. Cleverly disguised from above as a military outpost - not uncommon in this area.

The stainless steel metal walls quickly turned to gray stone, and then white drywall. The agent turned one last corner, and led them through a brightly (obnoxiously) lit hallway. The tiled floor, walls and ceiling were blinding, spotless white.

They walked passed several large windows that peered into what looked like patients rooms. The last one in the hall held Cub.

Wolf did a quick examination of him through the window. He was in white pajamas, barefoot and sitting at the edge of his bed. There were bandages going up his left forearm, and an IV stuck in his right. Cub's fair hair had been dyed a dark brown, almost black colour. He was also quite a bit tanner than Wolf recalled.

"Agent Rider will brief you on your part in the operation. He has your summary files." Agent Hall turned and speed walked back the way they came.

With only a second of hesitation, K unit opened the door. Cub turned his head towards the sound, and Wolf got his first proper view of Cub's face. There was a large bruise on the left side of his face as if someone had backhanded him. It looked to be about a week old. He also sported a cut on his left temple, an inch long and disappearing into his hair. If Wolf had to guess, he'd say it was made by the butt of a gun.

Eagle sprang forward, "Tell us everything! And if you even think the word classified I'll shove Wolf's socks down your throat!"

Cub snorted at Eagles antics, shaking his head slightly.

Any residual tension that may have existed between K unit and Cub dissipated immediately. The only feelings in the room were relief and concern.

Snake stepped up to Cub's bed, tilting his chin up to get a better look at his wounds. Upon closer inspection, Wolf could see that the cut was freshly stitched, but the injury itself was no less than half a week old.

"What happened to your face?" Eagle asked bluntly.

Cub hesitated, "I did have to fight my way out, you know."

Okay, Wolf thought, maybe the tension wasn't completely gone. Because that was a bold faced lie.

"You got out two days ago, Cub. Those," Wolf jabbed a finger in the general direction of Cub's face, "are older."

Cub seemed to consider lying again, but maybe he was tired. Or maybe whatever was being pumped through his IV was stronger than Wolf thought.

"The base I was at, it's for training children. The commanders have the right to train us in any way they see fit."

"And that includes smacking the daylights out of you?" Fox's voice was incredulous.

Cub snorted, "Includes? That's practically training 101."

* * *

"So, they are all named after animals?" A woman from the South American task force asked him in a mix of stilted English and Spanish.

Alex nodded, "Code names, but yes, all animals."

She nodded at a passing soldier, Snake as it happened. "Bunny?" she inquired.

He laughed, feeling the stitches on his face tug slightly. "Close enough," he agreed before following after Snake. They had a few things to get done.

* * *

Wolf watched Cub point out a turn in the hand drawn map. Apparently, the kid had drawn a full diagram of the compound they were infiltrating. From memory.

Cub raised a hand, making a gesture that looked like a finger gun. Then he used his pointer to draw a circle around a room labeled 'Hanger T'.

"-point of entry. All the hangers after L are disused by army personnel. T is used as a storage unit for army uniforms and the likes. They don't keep anything important there, so they don't bother guarding it too heavily." Wolf came into earshot of Cub's explaining. He leaned over the kids shoulder to get a better look at the map.

Half of the hangers were in an abandoned part of the compound, including hanger T. It would be easy enough to get in, the hard part would come in getting the kids out. They were kept in almost the perfect center of the inhabited part of the compound.

"Quick question," Eagle raised his hand like a schoolboy, Cub nodded at him. "Obviously I am all for getting these kids out and sticking it to the sick bastards that have them; but why do MI6 and the CIA want to do this? There's tons of corrupt armies and governments, and agencies like them don't mess around for no reason. Also, where are the local authorities?"

Cub considered the question, leaning back from his map.

"This particular group has gotten bolder. They've started to turn their sights outward, out of South America. As two huge powers, they looked at Britain and America first." Cub paused, gathering his thoughts before continuing, "When the NIA here got wind of it, they let the CIA and '6 know. But like you said, lots of corrupt people out there. There was a recent intelligence scandal in South Africa, so no one knew who to trust with this kind of operation. A small, trusted group of people from NIA and SASS and NCC decided it would be best to give the reigns to outside authorities. They're still working with us, just not directly. They are very busy with the whole intelligence debacle down south to worry too much about up north."

Eagle nodded, satisfied. It was nice to know that they had actually been invited for this op. and hadn't just barged over boarders illegally.

"Now," Cub continued, "if we're done with the current events lesson, our plane leaves in twenty. Grab the map, we'll go over everything one more time on the flight in."

* * *

K unit, Cub and two other SAS units sat in the army issued plane. The MI6 mission handler, Agent Hall, was at the safe house running comms. The CIA handler, Agent Miki Takeshi, was on the plane with them to coordinated the troops. Along with the three SAS units, they also had a six man group from the South African Special Forces Brigade, they were Africa's principal special operations unit and counter insurgency elite.

"Drop point in T minus ten-" Catherine Hall's voice came through the comms. Agent Takeshi gave the signal to open the bay doors.

Wolf checked his parachute one last time, glancing at his unit to give them a once over. Cub stood directly next to him, Wolf watched him shift his chute slightly.

Cub glanced over to him, giving him a nod of encouragement. The kid put a hand to his ear and said over the comms, "Want a hand getting out of the door, Wolf? Or maybe a foot?"

Wolf heard his unit snicker through the ear piece. He would have replied, but a red light started flashing the next second.

Drop point.

Wolf led the charge out the doors, not hesitating even for a moment.

Wolf hit the ground running, letting his parachute fall to the ground behind him before unclipping it swiftly. His unit was seconds behind him; he saw Cub land, the kids parachute fluttering around his shoulders like a cape before being removed.

"K unit going for primary objective one, doors directly in front of you will take you to hanger T. SASF unit, primary objective two. Follow K unit to T hanger. J unit and N unit are on containment. Let's get this done quickly and quietly, ladies and gents." Agent Takeshi gave them the run down once again, and off they went.

Wolf led his unit to the huge, abandoned doors ahead of them. The SASF unit came up beside them. Their leader, they were calling her Tigress for the sake of the mission, helped him crack the doors open.

Once inside, they made their way through the rows of boxed clothing. Reaching the end of the hanger, they turned left. Cub moved up to join Wolf and Tigress, making sure they went the right way. It was an awkward time in the morning, all the soldier's were back from missions and day training hadn't started yet; they had chosen this time because they were least likely to meet any opposition. They were right, the halls where deserted.

Pretty soon, the SASF unit split off, going to secure the main room where the adults resided. K unit turned towards the center of the compound, where the kid's barracks where kept.

Wolf turned a corner to the main common-space that the kids shared. It was empty but for a boy, seventeen or eighteen, with dark bags under his eyes and a rifle in his hand. The boy seemed to be in the middle of polishing it, there where dozen's of already cleaned guns at the boys feet; a punishment, probably. The boy looked up, alarm spreading across his features. He raised his rifle, but Wolf was already too close. He grabbed the barrel of the gun and forced it upward, a bullet flew into the ceiling. Wolf then yanked the gun from the teen's hands and clubbed him over the head with it, watching him slump to the floor.

Other kids began to flood the room, summoned by the sound of gunfire.

K unit raised there stun guns, not wanting to hurt these kids. For Wolf, everything after that was a blur.

* * *

Alex snapped off his last stun-dart, hitting Privet Damya squarely in the neck. He pulled out his handgun, slipping to the edge of the fighting crowd. He was out of non-lethal weapons, besides his taser, so he thought it best to get out of the gunfight.

He looked up, catching sight of his unit as they rounded the kids up. Most had surrendered already, not trained to handle an attack in their own base. The rest were being quickly subdued and corralled.

Knowing his unit was busy, he decided to check the halls for stragglers. In the tight, metal hallways, Alex could use hand to hand combat; he wouldn't have to worry about his lack of stun-gun.

"Heading to the halls, Wolf. Come find me when you're done here," he relayed to his unit.

He quickly turned into the halls, handgun at the ready, but still with the safety on.

Wolf heard Cub over the comms, but focused on the task at hand. Luckily, the kid soldier's hadn't put up much resistance. Pretty soon, K unit was herding the group of disarmed children out of the nearest hanger. One of their planes was waiting, and J unit helped them load the kids up. Thankfully, there weren't too many kid's here, so one plane was enough.

"Anyone in the halls, Cub?" he asked through his mic.

"Just a few scared little ones. I talked them down and sent them you're way."

"Unarmed?"

"Obviously," only Cub could sound sarcastic over a radio. "I'm just going down the last barracks hall, then I'll- oh shit."

"Cub?" Wolf was already moving towards the building, gun at the ready. "What's going on?"

No answer came, his unit followed close behind him. They were making their way through the halls when a loud bang echoed around them.

"CUB?!" Eagle shouted over the reverberating noise from the gunshot. No answer except Eagle's own echo.

They raced down the halls, guns up and ready.

Wolf shifted his finger to the trigger as a figure moved in front of him, ready to open fire.

"Cub! Thank goodness!" Snake sounded off behind him.

Cub stood in front of them, his eyes glazed over slightly. He didn't answer.

"You okay, Cub? Is there anyone-"

"No one else," Cub replied. "It's empty."

Assured that no soldier's would appear to blow their heads off, Wolf went to examine his young team mate. Closer inspection revealed that Cub's sleeve was wet- Wolf called Snake to take a look.

Snake tore away Cub's sleeve, revealing a stream of blood running down his bicep. The medic pulled his small first aid kit out, and led Cub back to the main room. The compound was secured, so he decided to treat Cub there. With measured strokes, Snake cleaned and dressed the new wound.

Cub didn't even flinch, staring straight forward as if in a trance.

"Where did that come from?" Wolf asked with uncharacteristic tenderness.

"A bullet."

"You were shot? Where's the shooter?" Eagle inquired.

"No, he missed. He's dead"

Wolf rolled his eyes at how unspecified Cub was acting. "Explain?"

Finally, Cub looked up from his staring contest with the floor. "I shot him first, but his finger hit the trigger when he fell. The bullet missed, but it ricocheted off the metal wall and hit me on the rebound."

"Ouch kid."

"Yeah," Cub seemed oddly distracted. "Ouch."

* * *

 **Note: That last bit there was left purposely vague and uncompleted. It becomes important in my next sequal, so remember it!**

 **Next: A much needed break for our favourite super spy.**


	12. Good Luck Kid

**Final Chapter! Details for a sequal at the bottom**

* * *

"You ready to get out of here, kiddo?"

"Ready as ever, Snakey-poo."

"The hell d'you just call m-"

"Cool it! Common Snake, kid just got off his deathbed!" Eagle gave Snake a good hearted shove.

Cub rolled his eyes at their antics, "I was hardly dying."

"Well," Wolf chimed in, "you damn well look like a corpse."

"Gee thanks, can we go now?"

Wolf sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and signalling that yes we can go now. Sometimes, Wolf couldn't decide whether he was the Unit Leader or Den Mother.

Cub uncrossed his legs and dropped the few inches off his hospital bed to the floor. He was already dressed in his army greens, and was ready to go. The slightly too loose army green shirt covered up the stark white bandages Cub now sported. The through-and-through bullet wound had been stitched up and wrapped, and Cub had finally been discharged. The doctor's at BB had been quick and efficient, but Wolf knew that Cub was dying to leave.

Together, K unit strolled out of the Med Bay. Cub happily pushed ahead, shoving his way out the doors. Wolf quickly followed, nearly bulldozing Cub over when the boy suddenly stopped just past the door stoop.

"Hey- kid, what are you doing?" His unit grumbled behind him as they too were forced to a stop.

Cub gave a confused grunt before sidestepping out of his way.

"You okay, Cubby?" Snake asked in all his Concerned Medic Glory.

"Yeah- yeah I'm fine, it's just," Cub squinted, pulling a hand up to shield his eyes, "it's just bright, is all."

"It's seven o'clock Cub, in the winter. The sun isn't even near us."

Cub shot Eagle a glare, though the effect was diminished as he was still squinting.

"Well," Snake said, putting on his reasonable voice, "Cub hasn't been outside in a while, it'll take some time for your eyes to adjust."

"Dandy," the sarcasm is strong in this one, "can we just go to the cabin please? I'm tired."

"Yeah, let's go" Wolf agreed. It wasn't often that Cub admitted a weakness, so when he did, Wolf was happy to accommodate.

* * *

Wolf woke up the next morning feeling surprisingly good. Maybe it had something to do with having his whole unit under one roof again- finally. Everyone was safe and sound and wrapped up in bubble wrap.

A quick glance at his watch told him that it was still a bit too early to be waking his unit mates. So, trying to avoid squeaky bed springs, he rolled over.

Shockingly, or maybe not so, Cub was already up and about. Wolf realized he was dressed, and if his damp hair was anything to go by, washed. Currently, Cub was rummaging through his duffel bag.

Not wanting to wake up the rest of the unit, Wolf simply watched as Cub pulled out a pair of classic, mirrored aviator sunglasses, holding them up in triumph before turning to sit on his bunk.

Cub glanced up, making eye-contact with Wolf. Wolf was displeased to note the dark bags under Cubs eyes only seemed to have gotten darker from yesterday. Cub, however, seemed unperturbed by his apparent lack of sleep. He smirked at Wolf and slid the aviators onto his face.

With the large, reflective sunglasses adorning Cubs face, Wolf almost thought he looked like a normal kid.

Scratch that, the military uniform kind of ruined 'normal'. However, with the glasses on (covering the purple bags and bloodshot eyes) and with Cubs newfound tan, he at least looked healthy.

Wolf watched as Cub lifted his left wrist, tapping it twice with his right forefinger. The question was apparent: Time?

Wolf looked at his watch again, time to wake up the unit. Instead of answering Cubs question, he simply plucked his pillow up and flung it directly at Eagles face. Eagle bolted up, spluttering. He turned a sleepy glare on Wolf.

"Morning to you too, Wolfy-poo."

* * *

They made their way to the cafeteria, running slightly late (Fox had slept in- bastard). They had been excused from morning parade though, so Wolf figured the Sarge wouldn't mind their tardiness.

Breakfast was a light affair, everyone cheered and wolf-whistled as they walked in. They grabbed their food trays and went to join J unit, who were also fresh from their hospital check ups.

All the senior units were glad to see Cub in one piece. They made their pleasure known by jabbing Cub between the ribs and socking him in the arm and generally causing Cub distress. Not that the kid seemed to mind.

The junior units mostly stayed clear. The incident from before Cubs absence, the confrontation and Stag being binned, was all too fresh in their minds.

With a little luck, Wolf thought, the maggots would leave Cub alone. Of course, Wolf realized, the recruits probably knew now that Cub could take care of himself.

During breakfast, a young soldier approached them with a message from the high ups. They were told to meet in the Sergeant's office as soon as convenient. Which, in army speak, means right now and yesterday, whether convenient or not.

Alex came to a halt behind Wolf, listening to the hollow taps as Wolf knocked smartly on the Sergeants door. A muffled 'come in' could be heard, and K unit quickly filed into the office.

They came to parade rest in front of the Sergeant Mathias Sanders desk. Sanders was reclined in his chair, feet propped on the edge of his desk as he read through some important report or other.

Alex was reminded of Blunt, how he would virtually ignore Alex while signing his death warrant. But then Sanders dropped the report, turning to give K unit his full attention, and the illusion was dispelled.

Sanders let his eyes drift over the unit, taking in their picture perfect stances and stoic faces. His eyes landed on Alex, and Sanders made an incredulous face. The Sergeant looked pointedly at the aviators that currently decorated Alex's face.

With a moment's hesitation, Alex removed the sunglasses. Squinting against the bright light that Alex didn't remember ever being this bright.

Sanders had some kind of reaction upon seeing Alex's bloodshot, tired eyes; but Alex missed it, still having trouble seeing past the glaring lights.

"K unit," Sanders barked, he never seemed to learn the term inside voice, "it has come to my attention that you have finished your refresher course, and have exceeded the three weeks of recruit training that was asked of you," he pauses, gauging their reactions. "In light of this, and in light of your recent missions, you have been issued two months of mandatory post-op and medical leave." Another pause. "Effective immediately."

Finally Sanders got the reaction he'd been pushing for. K unit was far to professional for any outbursts, but the raised eyebrows and shocked look in their eyes was the army equivalent to a shout of astonishment.

"I'll see you in eight weeks, dismissed." Sanders held out a folder, which Wolf quickly accepted. Then the unit turned to file out, Alex last in line.

"Oh and Cub?" Sanders called, just as Alex had his hand on the door, aviators having found their way back on Alex's face.

"Sir?"

Sanders gave him a long look, "Just, try to get some sleep, alright Cub?"

"Yes sir, of course sir."

"Dismissed. Good luck, kid."

* * *

 **Another sequel! Perfectly Fine is up.**

 **Perfectly Fine will follow the aftermath of Alex's mission, and the effect it has on him and his unit.**


End file.
